Two Princes
by DarknessIsTheUniverse
Summary: Another take on those fics where the team is in high school. Will be Reid-centric and include him meeting two guys who seem interested in him. Featuring Hotch as a prep, Morgan as a gang member, Emily as a goth and Gideon as a concerned dad. Slash!
1. Chapter 1

**Yes, I know. This is like the fourth story I´ve started without having finished the prior ones. In my defense, I wrote this a couple of month ago and found it on my computer. **

**To the story: I was attempting something lighter so this will be another take on those fics where the team is in high school. Will be Reid-centric and include him meeting two guys who seem interested in him. Featuring Hotch as a prep, Morgan as a gang member, Emily as a goth and Gideon as a concerned dad. **

**Chapter 1: Changes**

Spencer Reid-Gideon climbed out of his father's car with a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Jason Gideon walked around the car and put an arm around his shoulder as he pointed towards the house in front of them.

"See, the window there on the first floor? That's gonna be your room. I think you'll like it."

He gave him a smile that looked a little too eager and Spencer was quick to reassure him by also smiling even though he felt anything but.

Everything looked fine, the house seemed perfectly normal, there was a large backyard and he would have his own room. It didn't do much to distract him from missing his mom and worrying about where she was right now.

A week ago, Diana Reid had been declared mentally insane and he had met his father for the first time. Jason Gideon had travelled all the way from Chicago to Las Vegas to institutionalize her and help his son move to the only person he had left now.

"You wanna come in? I'll make us some lemonade.", Jason smiled as he motioned for him to come into the house.

Spencer did his best not to look to glum as he complied and discarded his bag by the stair case. The house looked clean and spacious; there were numerous pictures of birds and tons of books all over the place.

It was a definite change from the small, messy apartment he´d had with his mother.

His father grabbed his bag and carried it past the living room and into one of the guest rooms. He followed him quietly, taking in the big comfy-looking bed, the wooden desk and the closet.

"It's a little empty right now, but you can fill it up with your things, right? Make it more personal?"

Spencer looked down at his bag which contained merely the essentials of what he needed. He already missed his books even though he knew they would be flown in in about a week.

Jason stood by the door, looking like he was trying to find the right words but failed.

"I'm gonna go down make us some dinner, alright? I gotta go back to the station after but I won't be long. And tomorrow I´ll drive you to your new school."

"Ok, thanks, dad."; Spencer said, the word sounding foreign on his tongue. He sank down on the bed once he was alone, just sitting for a long time. There was nothing else to do really, he had no friends back home he could call and his mother couldn't be reached.

He doubted he would have any friends at his new school either. He was just too small, too skinny, too awkward. A bully's wet dream, he knew that himself.

His only hope was that this was going to be his senior year.

Next year he would be out of high school and would find out what college students thought of sixteen year old geniuses. Well, if that wasn't something to look forward to.

He lied down on the bed after pulling a book from his bag. It was on quantum physics and he´d already read it but it would do until he could find a library in the morning. If he found nothing else he could always get out his deck of cards and pass some time practicing his magic tricks.

Anything to take his mind of the day to come.

He only hoped that this year in high school wouldn't be the nightmare his prior one had been.

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><p><strong>Please review if you want to see this continued.<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**2: The First Day**

That morning, Spencer woke with a very definite ill feeling in his stomach, lying awake and staring at the ceiling for almost forty minutes before his alarm went off.

When his father knocked on his door ten minutes later, he almost wanted to tell the man he didn't want to go to school, or that he was sick maybe.

He thought he might feel homesick but the truth was there was nothing for him back in Vegas, no one who would miss him except for his mom.

The thought of her was what finally made him get up and get ready. She was always so proud of his scholastic achievements, always telling him how much more precious and special than all those other children he was and how far he was going to get in his life.

Sadly for Spencer, she seemed to be the only one to think that which resulted in him not only having her words but also constant bruises from being slammed into lockers and shoved around by older kids as an incentive to be excellent and get out of high school as quickly as possible.

Better get it over with, he told himself…ripping of the bandage and all that rot.

Maybe, he thought as he sat at the kitchen table with his father busily reading the newspaper and effectively ignoring his presence, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Over the years he had gotten pretty good at being invisible.

He was taken by surprise when Jason finally did say something, looking at him in a way that still seemed kind of uncertain, if not awkward. It was obvious Jason Gideon was not used to being around people much, much less to taking care of teenagers.

"I arranged a job for you after school. It's in the library a couple of blocks from the school. You can start tomorrow if you want to."

At that, Spencer finally felt a spark of happiness; perking up, he nodded: "That's great. Thank you."

It was great. His mother had lived on the verge of poverty, not being able to work in her condition and Gideon obviously wasn't making a fortune either as a small town officer.

So he could use some money for college next year -plus it would keep him occupied during the afternoons and he would be around hundreds of lovely, lovely books every day.

Suddenly the day didn't seem quite as grey as before and he even smiled a little when he assembled his school bag and followed Jason to his car. They were just getting in when raised voices from close by had him looking up.

Sure enough, the owner of the voice was just stomping out of a house close by. It was a girl who looked to be about his age; she was completely dressed in black from what he could see and she was shouting over her shoulder angrily as she stormed towards a waiting car.

Spencer couldn't quite understand what she was saying, and when there was no response from the house she simply got into the car next to a dark haired young man whose face Reid couldn't see.

He started the car and Spencer could clearly see them continue the argument as they were driving away.

Jason's sigh made him look around and he saw his father shake his head in an exhausted manner: "That girl…nothing but trouble."

He shook his head once more, then motioned for Spencer to get in the car.

The drive to the school was mostly silent, their attempts at conversation as strained as ever. It wasn't that Jason wasn´t trying and Spencer was sure he was a good man, but he had a feeling their relationship would function best if they each just kept living their separate lives and occasionally meeting for dinner.

And maybe it would be nice to have a father figure to depend on, someone who was responsible instead of him for once, maybe they would even get to know and care for each other over time.

Maybe.

Spencer was almost glad to get out of the sticky atmosphere of the car when they pulled into the high schools parking lot.

"Alright, call me when you want me to pick you up.", Jason told him, leaning out of the car´s window. He smiled reassuringly, as if wishing him good luck: "Unless you've found a friend who´ll give you a ride by then."

Spencer just stared at him for a long moment; clearly it would take a lot more for them to get to know each other.

"I´ll call you."

The school was about the same size as his old one which gave him hope that he might actually have a shot at his plan of becoming the invisible man.

For a moment, Spencer looked after his father's car and then at the little crowds of teenagers assembled on the parking lot. There were the usual different groups and he could already feel dread rising inside of him at the sight of the jocks, standing by their cars with one cheerleader each in their arms, bragging about their cars and distributing mock punches.

Suddenly anxious to get away, Spencer turned around quickly, hurrying towards the school building.

He didn't get very far.

He had taken but two steps, his eyes still glued to the jocks behind him when something bright pink and definitely metallic slammed into him, knocking him off his feet with a huff.

Spencer went down hard and winced at the concrete scratching his palms, more hearing than seeing his books landing in a messy pile all around him.

Less than five minutes before the first assault. Wow, that had to be a new record even for him. Great, he thought, biting back a sob…hadn't he known it…

"Oh, Gaga! I'm so sorry!", a high pitched voice squeaked from the side and he barely had time to register where it came from when someone grabbed his arms and pulled.

Spencer jerked away instinctively, but stilled in surprise when he came face to face not with a new bully but with the most colorful girl he´d ever seen.

She looked to be about eighteen and had light blonde hair with purple strands in it, her nails and summer dress as hot pink as the bicycle she had apparently just run him over with.

"Oh, no, it's ok, sweetie.", she reassured him, helping him off the ground: "I didn't see you there. Are you ok?"

Spencer stared at the girl like she was an apparition as she looked at him out of huge blue eyes that also sparked with glittery eye shadow. He had never met anyone dressed like that before –much less anyone to help him up after he had gotten knocked down.

"Yeah, I'm fine.", he got out after a moment, awkwardly pressing his books to his chest as he got up.

The girl eyed him up and down like she didn't believe him, then smiled brightly, holding his messenger bag open so he could drop the books back in.

"Good, I'm glad. That would have been a sucky first day for both of us.", she eyed him again, curious this time: "I don´t remember you seeing you before. Are you starting freshman year?"

Spencer who found himself relaxing quickly despite his instincts in the bright girls presence shook his head shyly: "Actually, I'm a senior this year."

"Shut up!"

He flinched but she was still smiling so he figured he must be ok despite her exclamation.

"Are you kidding me? You look barely fifteen!"

"I just turned sixteen actually. I…uh skipped some grades."

"So you're like a progeny or something?", she asked, her grin growing wider by the second.

Spencer didn't know whether to be worried or happy about her reaction; he was staring to get a little overwhelmed with her directness and apparent inability to shut up herself.

"That's so cool, I bet you´re like Brainiac! Hey, can you help me with my math homework? I bet you can. That's so cool…"

She broke off eventually at seeing his overcharged expression, slapping her own forehead in embarrassment: "I'm sorry. I wish I could say I don´t usually ramble like that. I´m Penelope. You can call me Pen, Penny or Goddess of All Technology."

"Uh…", he hesitated, nto sure how to answer that.

Luckily, Peneolpe didnt seem to mind him being so quiet but kept right on talking:

"And what´s your name, boy wonder?"

Now he couldnt help but blink in surprise at the nick name, but only replied: "I'm Spencer Jason Reid-Gideon."

"Wow, that's a mouth full. So your friends call you Spence, or what?"

"Um, I don't know…", Spencer shrugged shyly, unwilling to admit he´d never really had that many friends: "Everyone just calls me Reid, I guess."

"Huh.", Peneolope frowned slightly, but then shrugged, accepting it: "I may have to stick with that until I´ve found an appropriate nickname for you."

Before either of them could say anythign else they were interrupted by the ringing of the school bell. Penelope sighed heavily before starting to push her bike in the direction of the building, gesturing for Spencer to follow her,

"So where are you headed?", she asked.

"The secretary's office."

"´Course. Do you want me to show you were it is?"

"Um yeah, but don't you have class?"

Penelope just gave him a bright, guiltfree smile: "Oh, don't sweat it, sweet cheeks, Mr. Rossi knows from last year than I'm a lost cause in Italian. Nothing left to save there."

"Oh, ok…thanks…"

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><p>Half an hour later Spencer made it out of the office with his new schedule. He was taking Advanced Calc along with some other advanced classes. At the moment, he was late for Spanish.<p>

He spent some time wandering the deserted hallways in search of the right room, trying to get a feel for the building. So far everything had gone surprisingly well except for his little accident –but then he hadn't met all that many students yet.

Penelope seemed like a nice girl and she had left him with the promise to find him during lunch but he wasn't sure if she had actually meant it. Sure, she seemed a little bit crazy but surely she had enough friends to not have to waste her time with someone like him? Maybe she´d said it because she still felt guilty about running him over.

He shrugged to himself as he finally found the room and then knocked on the door tentatively.

There was a lot of noise coming from out of the room and he had to knock three times before anyone even answered. Then though, a middle aged woman with light hair and a strict expression opened the door for him, eyeing him with mild interest.

"Can I help you?", she asked and Spencer handed her his hall pass.

"I'm a new student here.", he said quietly: "My name is Spencer Reid."

"Oh, of course. My name is Ms Strauss. Come on in."

She stepped aside and he walked into a classroom that was even louder and more chaotic at a closer look. There were nearly thirty teenagers in the course, most of them lounging in their desks with their legs thrown over the tables, and chatting loudly with their neighbors, laughing and yelling. Some of them were even listening to music.

"Alright, class, settle down. The summer is officially over.", Ms Strauss raised her voice and it got a little quieter: "Class, this is our newest addition to the school, Spencer Reid. He just moved here and doesn't know anyone so please be kind to him. Spencer, why don't you find a seat?"

Spencer gulped, his heart falling as he looked around. He could feel everyone staring at him, silently measuring him up and between his overly large clothes hanging from his lanky frame, his geeky messenger bag and his messy, long hair he just knew that he was getting off well.

Obviously they were all older than him, but this class seemed to be mostly made up of the kind of teenagers one saw on reality TV shows, the kind with baggy pants and ghetto blasters who couldn't spell orange if Snoop Dog´s life depended on it.

Spencer had made some rather traumatizing experiences with that kind of group before and knew he desperately needed to avoid any combination of hormonal frustration and poor impulse control fueled by rap songs.

Luckily, the class´ interest seemed to fade within seconds and no one was fixating him so he calmed down a bit.

His eyes quickly assessed the room and he steered clear of the left corner where a larger group of burly teenage boys, two white and four black, with base caps and muscle shirts sat.

Instead, he chose to sit in the second row next to a pretty blonde who looked a little less imposing.

"Hi.", she smiled at him, waving slightly while Ms Strauss continued with her class: "I'm Jennifer, but everyone calls me JJ."

Spencer smiled back tentatively. This was the second friendly person he´d met in less than an hour.

Maybe his first day wouldn't be so bad after all.

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><p><strong>Alright, so I introduced everyone except for Elle, Hotch and Morgan, right? <strong>

**Ok, that´ll be next chapter. **

**By the way, I haven't made up my mind how this will go yet and I like both pairings equally so you can cast votes on who Spencer should end up with -even if you might want to wait until you've seen him interact with Hotch and Morgan.**

**Please tell me how you liked this. Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you guys so much for reading and commenting! Keep it up :D**

**This is where Reid meets Emily -and one of the guys...**

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><p>His good feeling lasted exactly two and a half more periods.<p>

Then followed fourth period –which was the moment Spencer Reid found himself alone, out of the safe environment of a classroom and in the most horrifying situation he could think of.

He was standing on the school's football field, meekly staring at his worn sneakers and fumbling with his oversized t-shirt while his new coach was in the process of assigning them into groups. For now it looked like a mere separation into boys and girls.

He looked around him, his horror growing when he took in his new _peers_ who were gathered in the usual groups, all of the guys at least five inches taller and easily forty pounds heavier than him.

Even with his oversized brain Spencer could not figure out what he could have done to God for someone like him to end up playing football.

He was going to die. Painfully and more or less slowly.

"Alright, guys.", the coach –who actually looked like someone who had played football in high school himself and therefore would have no pity on him- said: "This is how its gonna go. In this class we´re going to cover several sports starting with football. Form four teams, girls against girls and boys against boys."

If Spencer hadn't already known for a fact that hell existed, he would have been convinced ten minutes later.

He´d suffered through odd looks and jeers, through being the last one selected for teams and then constantly being either ignored or run over by players from both teams.

Devastated and utterly exhausted, Spencer eventually took advantage of being in the ignorance portion of that game and quietly slipped away when the coach wasn't looking.

He hastily found cover under the bleachers and sagged against one of the metal poles with a pitiful whimper. God, he hated this, always being too young, too small, too weak, too different.

One day in and he already hated school. Great.

"You hiding from P.E., too?"

Spencer´s head snapped up when an unexpected voice close by startled him, instinctively half ready to bolt should he find himself in danger.

Over him stood a girl who looked about seventeen and could have starred in the Adams Family with her thick black hair, pale face and heavy makeup which matched her black jeans and shirt.

He quickly recognized her as the girl from next door he´d seen that morning. His neighbor.

He mustered her closely for a moment trying to figure out whether she was being friendly or whether he should leave as long as hadn't worsened his day yet. Her expression was hard to decipher under all the color masking it, but she seemed to be smirking slightly.

He thought of her argument with her family that morning and how Gideon had dismissed her immediately because of her appearance. She likely was a social outcast just like him. Plus, she was alone and obviously hiding here, too –so maybe she could be more of a fellow tortured soul.

"Uh…yeah."; he finally decided to answer, shrugging slightly embarrassed: "I'm not exactly physical as you may have noticed."

The girl snorted bemused at his answer and took it as a cue to slump to the ground next to him:

"Hmm, well, this is my hiding spot…but you can stay here if you promise not to tell."

Spencer quickly shook his head, promising his silence: "I won't."

The girl nodded, satisfied for the moment, sitting cross-legged as she began going through her black purse. After a moment she pulled out some cereal bars and stuck one in his face unceremoniously: "Want one?"

Spencer wasn't actually very hungry, but he figured it wouldn't be polite to decline so he thanked her and started nibbling at the snack, both of them quiet for a while as they watched the other students run around the field from their hiding spot.

After some minutes in which he had convinced himself that the girl wasn't going to get him into trouble, he decided it would only be appropriate to engage in some kind of conversation:

"So… why are you hiding?", he asked.

She shrugged: "I refuse to partake in this indoctrination center´s efforts to exhaust us so much we won't be able to think clearly and realize what a big scam the whole system is. I'm a child of the night and that is beneath me. Plus, the sun is ruining my complexion."

She finished her little speech, looking like she had just answered a question about the weather. Spencer stared at her in surprise for all but three seconds, then he couldn't help but smile.

"Well, that reason is better than mine, I guess.", he shrugged: "I'm just really bad at sports."

The girl chuckled, playing with a strand of her long hair: "Yeah, that, too.

They both chuckled and Spencer began to feel a little better again in her company.

"I'm Emily."; the girl told him, her smile taking away a little from her scary make up: "But my friends call me Anathema. I mean they probably would if had any."

"Nice to meet you.", Spencer smiled warmly, suddenly sure that they were very similar deep down where it counted.

Emily was like him in a way. She would understand him. The thought made him all but giddy; he´d never had anyone who understood.

His hopes were answered when they got talking about themselves and he realized they were indeed very alike. Emily was a loner and more than a little unpopular with the other students but she was also very smart and funny and had read most of the books Spencer told her about.

The hours flew by and before they knew it the class was over and the other students were leaving the field.

"Wait a few more minutes so no one will see us for sure:", Emily held him back when he made to get up and Spencer complied gladly.

Truth be told, he wasn't particularly eager to get home anyway. But at least now he could walk home with Emily which was nice.

They waited until there was no one left in sight, then got up and made their way out from under the bleachers, careful not to hit their heads. They were almost out when their path was suddenly blocked. Emily stopped in her tracks, cursing when she saw them and Spencer almost ran into her because of it.

When he followed her gaze, he felt his heart skip a beat when he recognized six of the burly wannabe gangster rappers from his Spanish class who came towards them with threatening expressions on their faces, practically surrounding them.

Now that he saw them move in unison and outside of the class room it was obvious that they belonged to the same gang. It was also obvious that they weren't here to chat about the weather.

Spencer felt the old, all too familiar dread rise within him as the young men closed in, mean expressions on their face.

"Hey, look who we got here.", one of them snarled, grinning threateningly: "Little Miss wannabe vampire."

"Get lost, Kyle.", Emily snapped viciously, tightening her grip on her schoolbag.

Kyle just grinned at her before turning to Spencer and giving him a not-so playful push to the shoulder: "That your new boyfriend, batgirl? A bit on the scrawny side is he? Think he´s gonna protect you?"

Surprised, Spencer stumbled back only to have one of the other guys grab his arms painfully tight. Now really growing scared, he tried to pull but was instead pushed harder, sending him sprawling to the ground. He whimpered quietly at the hard, painful impact very much to the amusement of their bullies.

"Nah, looks to me like he needs himself a protector.", the second guy laughed darkly and the others joined in.

"Leave him alone!", Emily yelled, hurrying to his side only to be shoved back roughly herself. One of the guys grabbed her bag, and she fought him for it, scratching and yelling loudly.

Spencer struggled to get up from the ground despite his fear, knowing he had to help Emily against those gangsters before things got out of hand. He would probably end up with at least a bloody nose…but at least he was used to it instead of her.

Before he could get to his feet though, Kyle kicked him in the ribs, sending him back to the ground gasping in pain. Spencer felt tears burn in his eyes at his own helplessness, hating himself for being so weak that he couldn't even help his new friend.

Kyle gave a derisive snort at his expression and made to bend down and grab him by his collar when a loud voice suddenly interrupted them.

"HEY! What do you think you're doing?", someone shouted angrily, and then there were two pairs of feet running towards them.

Spencer dared to look up to find that Emily had been let go and the gangsters were slowly backing off, looking disappointed at the interruption.

Kyle shot Emily a derisive look, sneering: "Aw, mommy and daddy to the rescue."

She merely shot him a look of disgust, one which surprisingly didn't change much when she turned to look at their rescuer. The couple coming towards them were a guy and a girl, one which Spencer immediately recognized as JJ.

The guy with her looked to be about eighteen, tall, with carefully styled dark hair and handsome features. He looked more than a little pissed off as he stalked towards them coming to a stop in front of Emily.

"Why don't you take it up with someone your own size, Kyle?", he growled, arms crossed over his expensive looking suit jacket.

"I have no problem with that, Hotchner!", Kyle snarled menacingly and took a step closer, looking ready to take a swing at this opponent when JJ suddenly stepped in between them.

"Walk away, Kyle.", she demanded calmly but determined: "Don't you have enough trouble already?"

Kyle smirked down at the petite girl, all but leering at her: "I might if you give me a ride…home, that is."

Behind them, the guy called Hotchner growled angrily at his words but JJ didn't seem the slightest bit fazed, just smiling at him pitifully: "In your dreams."

Kyle's expression distorted to one of anger at her words and for a moment Spencer worried he would hit her, too, but then he just shrugged, seemingly indifferent: "Stuck up, bitch. Like I would want to be seen with you anyway."

He abruptly turned around, gesturing for his gang to follow as he left.

"We´ll catch up later, Hotchner."; he called over his shoulder: "When you don't have your little club of freaks to hide behind."

The remaining four looked after them until they were out of sight, then the guy raised an eyebrow at JJ, looking skeptical: "I could have taken them, JJ."

She just grinned, patting his arm: "Of course you could have. But nobody wants a student representative with a black eye. You can thank me later."

Spencer watched them bicker speechlessly, still trying to calm down while Emily seemed pretty familiar with them, her expression sour as she eyed her rescuers.

"You stalking me now?", she snapped at the guy, successfully diverting his attention from JJ.

He turned around, frowning at her: "You're welcome, Emily."

Then his eyes fell on Spencer who was still sitting on the ground and he walked over, offering him a hand. Spencer took it hesitantly and the guy pulled him to his feet with ease.

"You okay?", he asked, giving him a friendly smile.

Spencer nodded silently, quickly pulling his hand back and rearranging his disheveled wardrobe. The guy seemed friendly enough but he had only known him for three seconds and the way Emily was glaring at him wasn't exactly reassuring.

The guy seemed to sense his hesitation because he stepped back slightly, giving him some room.

"I'm Aaron Hotchner."; he introduced himself: "Emily´s brother."

He smirked in amusement at Spencer´s surprised expression as if to say he wasn't surprised by it. "Yeah,… she always hides here. Sorry she got you into trouble, uh…"

"Reid.", Spencer answered quickly, feeling reassured knowing that Aaron was related to Emily: "Spencer Reid-Gideon."

"Gideon?", Aaron looked at him with surprise.

Spencer nodded, suddenly realizing that it was Aaron he had seen this morning in front of his house: "I just moved in with my dad. He's your neighbor."

"I know Jason.", Aaron nodded: "He's a nice man who serves this community very dutifully. I didn't know he had a son."

"Well, now you do."; Emily suddenly fell in, sounding annoyed and impatient: "Can we get going already? I´m sure you've got stuff to do, people to charm and suck up to for the next election…"

Aaron´s expression darkened briefly when he glanced at his moody sister, but he caught himself pretty quickly, hiding his frustration fairly well.

"Sure, let´s go. JJ, you still coming to my place to help preparing the campaign?"

The blonde girl nodded, smiling brightly: "Sure, if you can drop me off at soccer practice later."

Aaron nodded before turning towards Reid, extending an inviting arm: "Come on, I'll give you a ride home, too."

Spencer blinked in surprise at the unexpected offer, about to politely decline when Emily simply hooked her arm into his and pulled him away, towards the parking lot.

"Yes, come on, Reid.", she mocked her brother: "Aaron doesn't mind. He _loves_ to make new friends."

And before Spencer had time to understand how he had ended up in the middle of this odd, twisted dynamic or come up with a better excuse he was sitting in the back of the Hotchner family car, sitting quietly and a little awkward while the siblings continued bickering with occasional calming comments from JJ.

After a while, she just gave up though and started talking to Spencer about their Spanish homework; he tried to keep up with her easy small talk but feared that he wasn't coming over as very conversational.

If so, JJ didn't let it show, merely smiling her friendliest smile when they stopped in front of his house, waving him good bye.

"See you tomorrow.", Emily called after him, making it sound like a statement rather than a question.

Spencer nodded in agreement, and then turned towards her brother to thank him for the ride.

"Anytime.", Aaron smiled as he leaned out of the driver's window: "Maybe we'll see each other again, too, sometime."

He winked, then drove the rest of the way towards their family home.

Spencer looked after them for a full five seconds before he remembered that he was supposed to go inside. That had been weird…all in all, a scary, yet pleasant, yet confusing day.

He didn't know much about human relations but he wondered if there hadn't been something odd about this whole encounter.

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><p><strong>Please let me know what you thought.<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi again! Firstly, thanks to those who are following this story! Im really having fun writing it so far. **

**As you´ve undoubtably noticed I dont have a beta and english isnt my first language, so please bear with any mistakes you come across. Thanks! **

**So, Im not sure yet where to take this story; this chapter I´m introducing Morgan and then I have some plans for the next two or three chapters but if there is anything you´d like to see in this fic please feel free to offer suggestions :-)**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4: Day 2<strong>

**l**

The cafeteria was swarming like a bee hive, hundreds of students walking, running, laughing and yelling, sitting at tables or on the floor with their trays, enjoying their first break after two long periods.

Spencer Reid tried his best not to accidently bump into the wrong person as he made his way over to the table area, a full tray in his hands. He had tried to relax but spending one whole period being stared down by the members of Kyle's gang that were in his Spanish class and a second period being completely ignored wasn't doing much for his spirits.

In addition, crowds like these made him nervous in general, there was just too much going on –it was too hard to keep a good overview which, for someone like him, was crucial. No one liked getting their face shoved into mashed potatoes just because of one small moment of negligence.

He gulped nervously as he took in all the closed-off groups sitting at the tables, about to make a bee line for the restrooms when a cheery, loud voice all but yelled his name from across the room.

He turned to find Penelope standing in front of him, just as bright and colorful as the day before, a blinding smile on her face. "Hey there, boy genius. How´ve you been?"

She looked so cheery that he decided not to mention his troubles to her.

"I've been trying to find somewhere to sit," he told her instead, shrugging helplessly, "but no luck so far."

"Well, lucky you," Garcia beamed, grabbing his arm and pulling him along, "you can sit with the most awesome person to ever set foot in this school: ME!"

Spencer didn't even think about protesting; too busy keeping his tray balanced as she dragged him towards the back of the room. There was a table by the windows which was a little isolated, with just two people sitting at it.

Spencer recognized Emily immediately, all in black as she picked at her food, big headphones blocking out the seemingly endless chatter of the boy sitting next to her. He was a little on the chubby side, with brown hair and glasses, sporting one of the ugliest shirts Spencer had ever seen. Both looked up when Penelope sat down at the table, pulling Spencer into a seat next to her.

"Spencer Reid, meet my delicious boyfriend slash future hubby Kevin Lynch."

Spencer waved a little awkwardly as Kevin smiled at him, greeting him not very attractively with a mouth full of mashed potatoes.

"And this," Penelope beamed, pointing at Emily, "is the second most awesome person you'll ever meet, namely-"

"Hey, Emily." Spencer smiled, and Penny's jaw dropped when Emily smiled back, asking him how he was.

"You've met?" she asked, surprised but not displeased.

Emily shrugged, completely nonchalant as she said, "We clicked immediately. I think Spencer and I are meant to be."

She snorted when Penny grinned and Kevin gawked while Spencer blushed deeply in embarrassment. He really liked Emily and her quick wit, but it seemed he had underestimated her yesterday. Plus, she did seem to have friends after all.

He was about to come up with a reply when Emily added, "Unless my brother gets to him first, that is."

She made a sour face and Spencer coughed, sure he would choke on a piece of carrot at that - but instead of flabbergasted stares Emily just got more laughs. She seemed to be doing those sorts of jokes quite a lot and no one looked surprised at the way she talked about her older brother.

Spencer couldn't help but remember meeting Aaron the day before, and couldn't help but blush further, Emily was joking of course; she couldn't have any idea that he really did like guys. And her brother was every girl´s dream boyfriend, perfect in appearance and behavior –the only reason he had even noticed Spencer the other day was because of his hero-complex that was for sure.

Not that Spencer had come to this school with expectations as high as finding himself a boyfriend, much less someone that clearly above his level…

"So you've met white knight Aaron? Isn't he the perfect gentleman?" Garcia interrupted his thoughts, waving a hand in front of her face like she was hot, "And he liked you? Oh, la la. I'm crushed of course, but I can understand his choice, you're so pretty!"

"That's not what happened!" Spencer protested, now terribly flustered, "he was just helping us out when we got into trouble with, eh—"

"Kyle." Emily helped out, and both Kevin and Penny frowned, their teasing thankfully forgotten for the moment.

"Oh, darn," Penny sighed. Her smile faltered a bit as she looked at Spencer. "Well, as you may have realized, we aren't the most popular kids around here. If you sit with us, they might bother you too so…"

"Oh, it´s fine," Spencer waved her off, "I'm used to it. And I like sitting with you guys…if you'll let me."

"Oh, of course, sweetie! We'd love to have you!", Penny chimed, causing Emily to roll her dark eyes.

"Really, Pen, where else is he gonna sit?" she interjected. "I mean, look at him."

She caught first Penelope's accusing, then Spencer's crestfallen expression, quickly correcting herself as she realized what shed said.

"Oh, no, I don't mean it like that. You're a great guy. You're just not-"

She broke off, helplessly gesturing around them until Penelope took pity on her and helped her out.

"What she means is you won't fit into any of the social groups around here."

Seeing Spencer´s questioning face, she pointed at the tables surrounding them, "See, there is a strict seating order around here. There's the jocks, varsity jocks, cheerleaders…"

Spencer followed her eyes as she pointed out the different tables, seeing what she meant.

"…wannabe gangsters…"

Kyle's gang, slouching around the other end of the room. They seemed to be occupying more than one table, separated into smaller groups among themselves. He quickly looked away.

"…preps…"

Spencer briefly caught sight of Aaron Hotchner sitting at that table, looking like he was giving a speech to his well-dressed peers, the fork like a microphone in his hand.

"…athletes…" He recognized JJ, with some other guys and girls next to Aaron's table. She caught his eye and smiled briefly, without waving though.

"…and the nerds aka us," Penelope finished her explanation. "Kev and I are geniuses when it comes to technology, and Emily is the most literate person I've ever met. She writes everybody's essays."

"For pay," Emily informed him immediately, a small, derisive smile tugging at the corners of her purple lips.

"And you, my tiny friend," Penelope added with a huge grin, "you can be our expert on everything. We´ll be a great team!"

"Yeah, like The Incredibles!" Kevin piped up, only to receive some annoyed looks in return.

"You must know, we are outsiders by choice," Emily told Spencer casually, not bothering to even try and whisper, "But Kevin here really _belongs _at this table."

Spencer couldn't help but smile, an unfamiliar but nice feeling setting in as he watched the three of them bicker and laugh. By the time they were finished eating he already felt like part of their group.

When the first bell rang they got up, getting in line to put their trays away.

Spencer hesitated, stopping in mid-step when he saw that the line they were about to get into was made up of some gangster guys at the very end. The others caught his look and Emily swiftly pulled him toward the other line.

"You know," Penelope told him, "you really need to beware of some of those guys, especially those around Kyle. They're not all bad though."

"Ah, come on, Pen," Emily scoffed, "you're just saying that because of your freakish, completely unhealthy infatuation with one Derek Morgan."

She might have gotten a cheeky answer but it didn't come to that because in that moment a voice from right behind them cut in, "Talking about me behind my back again, Prentiss? I thought you were a lady?"

They all jumped in surprise, and spun around.

Behind them in line stood a tall, black guy in jeans and a leather jacket over a white muscle shirt. At first sight, he looked very similar to Kyle in his get-up, and Spencer instinctively tensed, but the guy –Derek Morgan- merely smirked at them, an amused sparkle to his eyes.

Emily was the first to regain her wit, "I have no problem being a lady as long as I'm treated as one, Morgan."

She glared at him, her frown matching Kevin's and adding to Spencer's nervousness. Penelope seemed the only one not bothered by his sudden appearance.

"Don't mind her," she winked at him, "she got up on the wrong foot this morning."

Morgan returned her smirk, the small crease lines around his eyes making his smile one that spoke of warmth and fun.

Spencer kept quiet anyway as he watched their exchange, not trusting these mixed signals, making himself as small as possible without moving.

The guy seemed like he was nice enough and Penny seemed to trust him but he looked just like those guys with Kyle and he was in a group like them, too. Guys who looked like that generally saw him as an easy victim and he didn't need yet another tormenter.

"You should probably find yourself another line, Mr. Big Bad, before Em kills you with her looks." Penelope´s mood remained light and joking, but it was clear that she also meant what she´d said. The others obviously didn't care much for this Morgan guy.

"Ah, you wound me, baby girl," he pulled a grimace, clutching the part of his shirt over his heart, "and here I was thinking we were friends."

Spencer watched their exchange in wonder, asking himself how Pen had managed to become friends with this guy –they seemed to be on good terms despite their differences, flirting even. Kevin next to him seemed to know though, and he didn't seem to like it much.

"She's not friends with her friend´s bully's buddy." he snapped suddenly, earning himself a surprised look from both Penelope and Morgan.

A shadow passed over Morgan's face briefly and Spencer felt Kevin tensing up next to him, clearly not as brave as he pretended to be faced with someone who was at least twice his weight.

"Huh?" was all Morgan replied though, shaking his head, "I don't run with Kyle anymore, everyone knows that. I have my own gang now."

"Tomato, tomato.", Emily scoffed, clearly not believing him.

Morgan ignored her this time, his eyes wandering only to end up meeting Spencer's.

Spencer felt his breath catch as he was suddenly being fixated, seized up. Just what he´d tried to avoid. He barely kept himself from taking a step back and showing his apprehension, telling himself that nothing could happen to him in a filled cafeteria.

Surprisingly though, Morgan still didn't seem particularly aggressive, brown eyes watching him fidget curiously, slightly amused if anything. A spark of interest flashed over his face, and he stepped closer, invading his space.

"And who´s your new friend?" he asked Penelope –only to get a prompt answer from Emily instead.

"None of your business, that´s who he is." she snapped, stepping in front of Spencer protectively, "Fuck off, Morgan, go bother someone else."

For a moment nobody moved, Morgan and Emily glaring at each other silently, while Penny just looked exasperated. Then though, Morgan gave in, taking a step back.

"Fine," he shrugged, "See you later, Pen."

He reached out and picked an uneaten apple off of Kevin's tray provocatively, seemingly not noticing how the other boy jumped when he reached out.

"You mind?" he asked, not waiting for an answer before he took a large bite and walked away without another word, joining his friends by the exit.

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><p><strong>Exit Morgan :-) <strong>

**So... what do you think? Please let me know!**


	5. Chapter 5

**So sorry this took me so long. **

**This chapter has some more interactions with both Morgan and Hotch. Enjoy!**

xxx

This was hell.

He was sure of it.

It was exactly twenty four hours after the last time a full body tackle had taken him to the ground and now Spencer found himself faced with the reality that P.E. was going to be his last period _every_ day of the week.

He winced in horror as everybody around him got warmed up, fiddling with their gear.

The coach seemed as oblivious as ever to his horror and –which was worse- he was standing right between them and the bleachers this time so Spencer wouldn't be able to escape again.

Plus, even if he could he didn't want to risk running into Kyle and his gang again. They were in this class as well he noticed only now, shooting him dark glares across the field. Apparently they hadn't forgotten their threat from yesterday.

Spencer couldn't help but shudder, moving automatically until one of the benches at the edge of the field were in his back.

There he stared down at his helmet in misery, not even listening to the coach giving his usual pep talk. Right, like he even needed to bother putting that on –there wasn't a piece of plastic in the world that could protect one from the wrath of a bully scorned. If this was what this year of high school was going to be like, he wasn't going to survive it, that was for sure.

"Need some help with that?" a sudden voice from behind him asked, making him jump about three feet in the air.

When he spun around he found himself once more staring at no other than Derek Morgan. Or, to be more precise Derek Morgan's muscular chest considering how close the other had been standing behind him.

Remembering their last meeting and Emily's warning, Spencer quickly stepped back, bringing some space between them- only to have the backs of his legs hit the bench hard and promptly make him lose his balance.

He gasped in the moment he realized he was going to fall until a strong hand wrapped around his thin arm, steadying him. Spencer's head snapped up to stare at Derek, his heart skipping a beat at the unexpected move.

Morgan looked at him with one eyebrow raised, somewhere between amusement and confusion about his behavior. "Easy, kid. I didn't mean to startle you."

Spencer gulped as he stared up at him, acutely aware of Derek's fingers around his arm and the fact that the look he was receiving was much too interested for his tastes. Where had he suddenly come from? And why was he talking to him again?

Warily, he pulled away and surprisingly Derek let go almost immediately, merely frowning briefly.

Just as the first time they'd met he didn't seem overly aggressive despite his size and appearance, but Spencer still had a hard time bringing his pulse back to a near normal level. He had no idea why Derek was trying to talk to him for the second time in only two days but he knew from experience to better be safe than sorry.

"Uhm, sorry?" he squeaked, hating how insecure he sounded. There was no one else in hearing distance, and thankfully Kyle was keeping his distance as well.

Derek, seemingly oblivious to his thoughts, chuckled at his reaction and pointed at his helmet, "You look like you could use some help putting that on."

Spencer blinked in surprise, for a moment literally forgetting how to answer. The last time a jock had ´helped` him he had gotten his hair and face washed in one of the toilets of his old school. He studied Morgan's face carefully in order to determine any ill intent but couldn't seem to find any.

"Uh, no thanks, I'm good." he shook his head anyway, avoiding the other´s gaze to make sure he didn't come off as provoking.

"You sure?" Derek actually bent down, twisting his head so he could look into Spencer's face.

Considering how close he still was, it left their faces only about four inches apart. Dark chocolate eyes assessed him unabashedly as Spencer stood frozen, overcharged with the situation. He had no idea what he was dealing here with. Was he threatening him or actually being friendly? With Derek's eyes that close it was increasingly hard to focus.

"You look nervous," Derek remarked quietly, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was well inside Spencer's personal space, his eyes flashing briefly as he asked, "Is that because of P.E. or because of me?"

Spencer felt this heart flip, acutely aware of the bench´s edge digging into this calves in that moment. Before he could say anything though, there was a movement to his side and a moment later Aaron Hotchner was jogging up to them, coming to a halt next to Spencer.

Spencer blinked, confused for a moment. Huh, he hadn't realized Aaron was in their class, too. Well, that would explain where he had come from so fast the other day…

He quickly stole a glance at the older boy who looked just as groomed in his sport outfit as he had in his preppy clothes. He was of about the same built as Morgan but a bit taller so that he was now glowering down on the latter.

"Everything alright here, Spencer?" he asked without taking his eyes off Morgan, whose face quickly darkened as well in annoyance. Apparently those two didn't care much for each other either.

"Yeah, I'm good," he answered a little breathlessly, startled to see both of them suddenly morphing into predators, fixating each other with clenched jaws and hands. He had seen Aaron grow confrontational the day before with Kyle but for some reason he seemed even more on edge now. Derek's face had quickly lost its charming grin, now wearing an expression of barely concealed irritation.

"Something you need, Hotch?"

"The coach decided that we are going to start off with two on twos." Aaron informed them, his voice much smoother than his expression, "Spencer and I are a team."

He raised a provoking eyebrow as he gestured for Morgan to leave them, "I believe you're with Kyle over there."

"Yeah, so does your sister. You ganging up after all or something?" Derek mocked, crossing his arms in front of his chest. He was clearly not amused by Aaron´s implication. Not that the latter seemed to care much.

"You´ll find out if you and your friends don't leave us alone." he said, a shade darker than seemed to fit the image Spencer had of him.

In that moment the trainer blew his whistle loudly, ordering all of them into their groups. Derek shot Aaron another dark glare before turning around and walking off.

Spencer looked after him with a weird feeling. After this little incident, he was even somehow even less sure about how to categorize Derek Morgan. He didn't seem happy about being paired up with Kyle, but he obviously didn't like the people around Emily either…

He was distracted when Aaron turned and smiled at him apologetically, "Sorry about that. It looked like he was bothering you."

"Uh, no." Spencer couldn't help but blush in embarrassment, thinking about the pitiful impression Aaron must have of him, "I-he was just talking, I think..."

The older boy pursed his lips at that, clearly not convinced, "Yes, well. Morgan's not one of the people you'll want to spend too much time talking to."

"Because he is in a gang?"

Aaron nodded. "He's just one of those guys who constantly get in trouble, you know? Just ask your dad, he knows him well."

Spencer looked at him with surprise and worry as he pondered the implication. That bad…?

"Don't worry," Aaron smiled reassuringly at his expression, "I'll keep an eye out for you. And so will Emily apparently. She´s like a hawk."

He smirked at his own comment and Spencer couldn't help doing the same. He was beginning to be really glad Aaron had come over to him, whether there really had been a threat or not. Emily´s brother was nice and polite and funny –and athletic as it turned out.

After their brief conversation he proceeded in helping the genius work on his nonexistent technique, actually helping him improve.

Spencer did his best to follow his instructions, once again afraid he would make a complete fool of himself, but Aaron was immensely patient as he demonstrated for him how to move and throw over and over again.

"Here, let me show you." Spencer felt his heart flip when Aaron stepped up close behind him, resting his hands on his arms to direct him in his motions.

It seemed so casual and yet he couldn't quite calm down…He couldn't deny Aaron was really good-looking and he had never been this close to another guy before...

But Aaron wasn't gay, right? No way, he was just being friendly…and Spencer might just screw that up if Aaron noticed anything was odd about his reaction to his touch. The thought made his heart flutter again, this time in near panic. He´d never had any friends before, he couldn't screw that up.

By the time their class was over he felt almost relieved, finally able to breathe normally again once there was some distance between them. After changing into his normal clothes, he was about to thank Aaron for being so friendly and then quickly excuse himself but his new friend seemed to have other plans.

Without hesitating, he steered Spencer towards his car once they reached the parking lot. "Come on, I'll give you a ride."

Spencer hesitated, about to say something stupid like not wanting to be a bother until he remembered that Aaron lived right next to him. He was going to his place anyway.

"What about Emily?" he asked lamely instead, feeling somewhat nervous about them being alone in the car. Luckily, Aaron didn't seem to take note of his odd behavior.

"Oh, she has glee club right now," he explained with a shrug, opening the door for Spencer to get in. After that there was really nothing else to say.

As they drove off the parking lot Spencer did his best to distract himself by trying to image Emily, dressed all in black and looking like a member of the Adams family, doing show tunes. She really was an odd one…

"So are you going to sign up for any clubs, Spencer?" Aaron asked conversationally as he drove.

Spencer shrugged, "I was thinking about joining the Mathletes or the Computer Club. Penelope is in that one, two."

"Yeah, she's pretty good with technology. Last year, she helped the school council creating flyers and a homepage for the prom. You know, if you wanted to you could join the school council, too. We can always use ambitious helpers."

"Uh, I might," Spencer murmured, somehow unable to say the way Aaron was smiling at him encouragingly.

Their conversation remained unsubstantial but pleasant and Spencer found he was glad he had agreed to let Aaron take him home. He had no idea why the older boy would feel the urge to, much less to stand up for him -but he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

When they pulled up in front of the house, Spencer was surprised to see his father was standing on the porch. He watched as they both got out, smiling widely when Aaron walked up to him to shake his hand.

"Hello, Aaron. Good to see you." he smiled, "How is school going?"

"Great as always, Jason." Aaron replied politely, shaking the man's hand firmly.

Gideon nodded like he hadn't expected anything else.

"Thanks for bringing Spencer home. It's nice to see he's making such good friends."

"Oh, it's no problem," Aaron assured them, turning to Spencer as he offered, "If you want to you can always ride to school with us, Spencer, it's the same way after all."

"That'd be great, thanks." Jason replied before Spencer could.

Aaron nodded and then excused himself, walking back to his car with a wave, "See you tomorrow then."

They looked after him from the porch as he pulled the car around his house, vanishing from view.

"That Aaron is a really swell guy." Gideon nodded to himself, smiling as he rested a hand on Spencer's shoulder.

Spencer nodded thoughtfully as he let his father usher him into the house, "Yeah, I guess he is."

xxx

**And Daddy Gideon approves! What more can one hope for? ^^ **

**He probably won't be too fond of Morgan, but we will get to that soon. **

**Btw, if you could choose would you rather Derek´s a good guy and just misunderstood, or really a little ´bad´? Probably a mix of both, right? Ha.**

**Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the delay :-( Ive started writing another story called Let the Right One In. Its about vampires and Im very excited about it but I will not abandon this, promise.**

**So, by request this chapter shows Spencer joining the computer club with Penny and Kevin. While working on this it occurred to me that Kevin as a high school student is literally Xander so I put a little inside joke in here, see if it makes you smile**

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><p>"Over here, Spence!"<p>

Penelope's cheery voice broke through the animated chatter filling the large room and Spencer turned to make her out sitting at a table amongst the other students, tapping away into the computer in front of her with one hand. Next to her was Kevin who was talking to a girl he didn't know, both of them clearly too preoccupied with what they were doing on the computer to even look up.

He quickly made his way over to them, taking a seat next to Penny. "I'm so glad you could make it, sugar," the blonde beamed, "this club is so much fun, you'll see."

She gestured to the petite read headed girl sitting next to Kevin at their table, "Spencer, this is Willow, she is also a computer whiz."

Spencer smiled at the girl who waved shyly before going back to talking to Kevin.

The club hadn't started yet and there was no teacher in sight so he just looked around while Penny kept on chattering away as she showed him what she had been doing on the computer so far, telling him all about new programs she had developed and projects the computer club was working on.

Spencer listened politely, beginning to wonder if he would even be able to keep up with these people as he stared at Penny's fingers moving over the key board with lightening speed. He didn't have much experience with computers so far, but then, it didn't seem too hard. The others had learned it too after all and they weren't certified geniuses.

He looked around at the rest of the students assembled, working on their own computers alone or in pairs. Luckily, none of Kyle's gang were in sight. He let out a deep sigh of relief.

It was his second week at the new school and he was beginning to think that maybe this year wouldn't be so bad after all. Sure he still got dark stares from Kyle and his goons whenever they saw him in the hall ways and during P.E. but no one had tried to get to him after the first few days.

He suspected it was because he wasn't alone like he had always been. Emily, Penny and Kevin were great to him, and while Aaron and JJ seemed to play in a whole other league they were always friendly and watching out for him.

That didn't mean he was any less apprehensive about potential bullies though. Also, Kyle's gang being his prior focus didn't keep him from noticing that they weren't the only ones paying an unusual amount of attention to him.

No, there still was one Derek Morgan who also seemed to be watching him way too much with this odd, unfathomable expression, and always showing up close by unexpectedly.

He still wasn't sure what that was all about but kept his distance whenever possible just to be safe.

In that moment, the teacher entered and Spencer didn't have time to think about much else than computers for almost thirty minutes.

Penny helped him a lot with the project he had been given and he was quickly getting into it, finding it more enjoyable than he would have thought. So indulged in his task he was completely taken by surprise when towards the end of the class Penelope brought up the very subject of his glum thoughts earlier.

"So, is there anything going on with you and Derek?" she asked, making him look up in surprise. They hadn't exactly been keeping up a fluent conversation that didn't concern their projects and he hadn't expected her to ask a question like that.

"Uh, what do you mean?" he asked nervously.

Penelope tapped her colorful fingernails against her chin as she looked at him thoughtfully, "I was just wondering after how he reacted to you in cafeteria. Emily said he tried talking to you during P.E., too, and in the hallway once."

Spencer tugged at his sleeve as he shrugged. There was no use in denying he had noticed it as well, but so far he had been doing a rather good job at blocking out all thoughts in that direction.

"Uh, yeah, I actually don't know what that was about. He didn't say much because Aaron came along just then."

To be honest he still didn't really believe it had been anything good Morgan had been up to, but he didn't want to say anything too rash since Penny seemed to like the guy for some reason. He was pretty sure his expression gave him away anyway but to his surprise Penny merely smirked at him.

"My, my, Spencer Reid, barely here for a week and already you have all the guys´ attention."

Spencer grimaced. The way she said it that sounded like a good thing.

"I could do without that to be honest," he murmured.

Penelope blinked, seemingly baffled by his reaction, "Oh, I'm sorry, don't you like guys? I assumed-"

Spencer´s head snapped up at her words and they just stared at each other for a second, both realizing that apparently they had been talking about two different things.

"Wha-?" Spencer finally stuttered, cheeks flaming, "Oh! No, I- yes, I mean I do…what I meant to say was that I'd rather not get noticed than beat up."

It was hard to push down the impulse to just deny everything, immediately reminded of the reactions he usually got upon outing himself to peers -but he knew that she wouldn't believe him anyway. Plus, she didn't seem bothered anyway.

In fact, her bright smile returned almost instantly.

"Oh, Emily is going to be crushed," she beamed in a voice that completely contradicted her expression, "And I am five bucks richer."

Spencer just eyed her speechlessly, unwilling to believe that seemingly all of his new friends had already had their suspicions and his secret had never really been one.

"I'd rather not everyone knows," he told her in a hushed voice, picking at the table top, "it usually seems to make me even more of a target."

A warm hand patted his arm reassuringly, Penny's smile never fading, "Don't worry too much about that. We don't care. And Aaron seems to be pretty adamant about watching out for you."

"Yeah, he's really nice." Spencer agreed, unable to keep from blushing slightly as he realized how that statement must sound in light of their prior conversation.

Sure enough Penelope picked up on that right away, "Oh my, don't tell me our boy wonder has a crush on Hotch?"

Spencer felt his face heat up even more at her excited squeak, flustered and embarrassed at the same time, wishing she wouldn't speak quite as loudly. Even if she was okay with him being gay he didn't think he needed the whole class to know.

"No, of course not," he shook his head quickly, "he's just being nice to me…plus, he has JJ, right?"

Of course he did, they were perfect together -and if he didn't he could have any other girl, Spencer thought, trying to ignore the little sting the thought gave him. He didn't want to think of Aaron that way, especially since he knew that even on the off chance he was interested in guys he certainly wouldn't be interested in a guy like Spencer. No one was. He hung his head as old sadness overcame him momentarily.

Penelope seemed to sense his mood changing because she looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, then she shook her head, "I wouldn't be so sure about his tastes if I were you. And neither about JJ´s."

She smiled at his confused expression before waving it off, "Plus, even if. I just wanna know if he's your type, is all."

Spencer tensed under her expectant stare, slowly realizing that she wouldn't stop talking about the subject anytime soon. Apparently she thought that him being gay would automatically make him want to participate in girl talk. Oh dear, the horror.

"I really don't think…I mean…", he stuttered, trying hard to think of a way to get out of the situation with as little damage done as possible, "Why don't you tell me who your type is?"

Penny smirked at that, clearly not taking his question as a rebuttal but as an opening; not exactly what he had hoped for but still better than the alternative.

"Well,", she lowered her voice conspicuously, "obviously Kevin is the man of my dreams -but if he were to die in a tragic accident I would so totally have prettiest babies in the universe with my Der-bear."

"Uh, you mean Morgan?" Reid blinked, talking a moment to catch up. He glanced over at Kevin who was still busy talking to Willow though.

Penny nodded, pretending to fan herself with one of her bright pink folders, "Can you blame me? He's everybody's type. What's not to love? The looks, the smile, the bod…don't you think he's hot, too?"

Spencer couldn't help but cringe at the question, sure that his face must look like a ripe tomato by now.

Clearly had she not only failed to catch on to his reluctance to talk boys, she had just neatly moved on from bad to worse, switching her focus from Aaron to Derek Morgan. And now she was misinterpreting his facial color.

"You do, don't you?" she snickered, "You totally want his babies, too!"

Spencer coughed in shock at her words, instinctively slapping a hand over her mouth to keep her from talking. Not only was he terribly embarrassed by now, he was also rightfully terrified that someone might overhear and Morgan might take offense to his alleged crush.

"No, I –what? No, Penny, I just don't want the guy to make my life hell, that's all," he defended himself almost desperately, looking around to see if anyone was paying attention to them.

Luckily, it seemed no one who looked like a friend of Derek's was a member of the computer club.

To his great relief, Penny seemed to understand anyway and made an appeasing gesture. He let his hand fall, embarrassed again. "Sorry," he mumbled.

She merely shrugged it off and then assessed his expression, a little bit more serious now, "You're worried he'll be trouble."

There was really no use denying it, what else was he supposed to think, especially after every one apart from her had reacted negatively to Morgan.

Penny bit her lip, looking troubled for a moment, "You know, Derek is a good guy, he really is. You really shouldn't worry about him hurting you or anything…He just made a couple of bad decisions, like hanging out with the wrong people."

Spencer didn't answer, not wanting to upset her by openly doubting her words. Who knew, maybe she did have some kind of insight into the guy that no one else had.

Fact was though, that he had asked Jason about Morgan's past one night after Aaron had hinted at it and had been shocked to find that Derek Morgan was no stranger to the local police. He and his friends had been picked up by the police dozens of times over the past years and his file was full of various accusations the worst being aggravated assault.

Jason had been very adamant about Spencer not getting caught up with the like of him. Not that he had needed that advice.

He didn't hold it against Penelope to want to speak up for her friend, the truth was though he had hardly spent any time on pondering Morgan's physique except for when he'd approximated how much a right hook delivered by him would hurt.

"I just want to keep out of trouble," he finally told her lamely and gratefully she let the subject go, apparently sensing he was uncomfortable.

The rest of the hour passed rather quickly and he walked towards the parking lot with the three teenagers, quickly forgetting about their conversation again as Kevin's jokes brightened all of their moods.

"You need a ride home?" Kevin asked as they finally stood in front of his beat down truck. Willow and Penny had already climbed in, but Spencer hesitated.

"Could you drop me off on your way into the city?" he asked hopefully, "It's my first day of work today and I don't want to be late."

"Sure thing just hop in," the other boy grinned, "Where do you work?"

"My dad organized a part time job for me at this little book store called Quincy's."

"Oh, I love that one," Willow chimed in from the back seat, her eyes gleaming with excitement, "it's this really old and cute little store where they have all kinds of rare and old books. I go there a lot, the owner is super nice."

"He's nice to you because you're bringing his kid through college with all the books you're buying, Wills," Kevin laughed and the redhead blushed.

"Well, maybe some more reading wouldn't hurt you, mister," she pouted, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Kevin just stuck his tongue out at her.

Penelope laughed, shaking her head at the two of them before turning to Spencer, "I'm sure it'll be nice, maybe we'll visit you there soon okay?"

Spencer agreed happily and they talked about the computer club until they had reached his destination. There he got out of the care and thanked Kevin before waving them goodbye e as they drove off.

It turned out the owner of the little store was rather nice, especially after hearing how many books Spencer had already read a this young age. He didn't stick around for long though after he had shown him around, disappearing into a dusty back room to go through the vast amount of books stacked there.

Spencer didn't mind, he took a quick tour through the store, mentally categorizing the position of each book before eventually sitting down on a stool behind the counter.

It didn't seem like many customers came into the store so after a while he picked out a book and began reading, glad to be able to distract himself from any frightening or improper thoughts concerning any guys at his school. He felt good here, unbothered and at ease among his books. What more could he possibly need?

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><p><strong>Did you catch it? Everybody needs some magic :D <strong>

**Sorry, not much happend this chapter, the next one will have some more interaction with one of the guys though I think.**

**Please review! Thank you.**


	7. Chapter 7

**This is mostly filler. The next chapter will have lots of interaction time though, promise :-)**

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><p><em>Three days later:<em>

"So, do you get a nice discount on the books here?" Emily leaned against the counter behind which Spencer was sitting, putting a large stack of books in front of her.

Spencer smiled at her as he rang up her purchases. She was about his tenth costumer in three days and he was still a little slow with the cash register but luckily Emily wasn't in a hurry. She had walked with him to work after school and had been browsing through the book shelves for the past half hour, stopping every once in a while to chat with Spencer.

"I do," he nodded, "do you want me to buy the books in my name?"

"Nah," she shook her head no, "my rentals stacked both me and my brother up with credit cards. We don't have a limit as long as we don't bother them with our insignificant issues. Spending as much money as I can is the second best revenge next to dressing the way I do."

"Oh…uh, ok," Spencer tried not to let it show how much her words disturbed him, both the part about her indifferent parents and the fact that she had all the money she wanted. Neither was something he was exactly used to.

"So…" Emily rested her chin on the counter, looking up at him, her dark hair like a curtain around her, "When were you gonna tell me that our wedding plans have been cancelled?"

Judging by her tone she might as well have been asking for a napkin but Spencer found himself red-faced and coughing once again. Damnit, Penny.

"Uh, I-" he stuttered, utterly unsure whether to laugh or apologize; Emily was still hard to assess sometimes.

To his relief she smirked at him though, not at all annoyed or disappointed, "Oh well, I guess I'm gonna have to deal. And having you as a brother in law instead of a husband might be even more fun, don't you think?"

It took a few long seconds for Spencer to register her words, especially since now she didn't look like she was joking at all. He blushed harder, a book slipping from his hands promptly as he tried to look unaffected.

Why the hell did everybody keep pairing him up with Aaron? Couldn't they see how unlikely that was, how embarrassed and borderline depressed it made him every time?

"I'm not going to marry your brother, Emily."

"Does he know that?" she smirked, seemingly oblivious to his discomfort, "He hasn't stopped talking about you in days._ Spencer is so smart. Spencer is going to join our club. We should invite Spencer to dinner_. Fuck, I swear if I didn't happen to adore you I would have puked into his cereal by now. Can I smoke in here?"

"Uh, no. I don't think so." Spencer shook his head distractedly, still trying to process everything she'd said. It almost sounded like… "Emily, does he- does he really talk about me?" He was pretty sure she was only exaggerating, but not to a hundred percent. Maybe Aaron had actually talked about him? In a good way? He shook his head, afraid to let hope grow roots in his chest. It would be nice to know that Aaron found him sympathetic, but he wasn't foolish enough to interpret more into that. Plus, he wasn't looking for a boyfriend, he reminded himself, he was looking to stay out of trouble.

Emily merely shrugged, pulling a face, "Sure does. Sickening if you ask me. You really should come to dinner though. I would just die to see the look on my father's face."

Spencer gave her a small smile, careful not to reply verbally. As much as he enjoyed both Emily and Aaron's company, it sounded like their parents were very strict and the last thing he wanted was for the siblings to get in trouble because of him.

Thankfully Emily didn't insist on an immediate answer. Instead she grabbed her books and shoved them into her school bag, "Well, I´m a be off, lover boy, gonna smoke a cigarette on the way home, make sure my clothes smell like it."

Spencer waved her goodbye, shaking his head slightly as he looked after her, leaving her to conduct her vendetta.

Once she was gone the store was empty and quiet again, Mr. Quincy allegedly working somewhere in the storage area again while Spencer was pretty certain the old man just took his naps in there. He finished his shift without any disturbances, long done with his homework for the week by the time he could go home.

He left the store, stuffing a new book into his satchel as he walked down the street. It was in the early evening and the sun hadn't set yet so he walked slowly, enjoying the warmth of the sun on his skin and marveling at the pink sky.

Absorbed as he was, he didn't realize he was about to get into someone's way until it was already too late. One second he was gazing at the sky, the next something hard bumped into his legs, almost knocking him off balance.

Spencer gasped, fighting to stay on his feet as he looked down to find the source of the impact. He found a little boy with dark skin and shaggy dreadlocks about the age of seven sitting at his feet, miserably staring at an ice-cream cone which now lay broken on the pavement. For a second he almost smiled because of the way the boy looked so much like a mini version of a wannabe gangster, then though his conscience over won him.

"Hey, you okay?" Spencer bent down, immediately feeling bad for running the kid's treat.

The boy sniffled briefly before looking at him and nodding, trying to make a brave face. He let Spencer pull him back up and looked like he was about to slouch off with hanging shoulders when Spencer called after him.

"Wait! I'm sorry about your ice cream." At a closer look the boy's face was slightly dirty as were his worn clothes; he didn't look like someone who got treated to ice-cream often. "Let me get you a new one?" Spencer suggested.

The boy looked at him surprised if not warily for a moment, but when Spencer only smiled reassuringly he nodded slowly.

"Can I have strawberry again?" he asked in a small voice that didn't fit his get up at all.

"Sure, come on," Spencer smiled and they walked a couple of hundred feet back to the store. Once the boy had his ice cream safely in hand again and Spencer had paid for it, all mistrust seemed to be gone and he happily walked along the sidewalk next to him, eating his treat and telling him about how much he liked strawberry and vanilla and what he would get next time.

Spencer smiled happily, relieved that he wouldn't have to feel guilty anymore.

They came back to the scene of their run-in and he was about to say goodbye and finally walk home when something occurred to him. There was no one with the boy. He was all alone in the streets and it was getting dark.

"Hey, uh-"

"Sammy."

"Sammy, aren't your parents with you?"

The boy shook his head.

"Well, do you live anywhere close by?" Spencer asked, "It's getting dark and I really don't think I should leave you here by yourself."

"No, I don't live here," Sammy told him, only mildly impressed as he was still busy with his candy, "I still have to walk home, it takes about fifteen minutes."

"Well, wont your parents pick you up?" Spencer frowned when the kid only shook his head without answering; he was starting to think that Sammy might come from a family that didn't look after their children too much for whichever reason.

He was acutely reminded of how he had walked the streets alone for most of his youth, buying groceries and necessities whenever his mom wasn't up to leaving the house. He had been a bit older than Sammy but he had still gotten in his fair share of trouble that way.

"Would you maybe like me to bring you home?" he asked, "So you don't have to walk by yourself?"

Sammy looked a bit skeptical, apparently aware of the fact that Spencer wasn't very intimidating either, but he seemed happy enough to have someone to keep chatting to, so they walked further down the street, Sammy leading the way. Soon enough he was telling him about his friends and school again and Spencer was glad he had decided to accompany the child.

"And then we went swimming in class and we…"

Spencer smiled as he listened. The boy was warming up to him incredibly fast, something he seldom experienced with children and which he accounted to the gift of sugar.

It was only about then minutes later when he looked up that he realized that they were apparently in a different part of the city now, one with far less people and houses that looked almost like projects.

He gulped, stopping in his tracks as he realized that Sammy apparently lived in a pretty bad neighborhood. It made him sad as well as anxious. If he assumed correctly where he was now, Jason had told him not to come here by himself.

"Come on, Spencer, it's not much further," Sammy prompted him impatiently, pulling at his hand.

After a moment Spencer let the boy pull him further down the street, telling himself that he was being ridiculous. It didn't look that bad, plus it wasn't even dark yet and this wasn't the Bronx. No one would jump them. He would bring Sammy home as promised.

No sooner had he strengthened his resolve than he suddenly heard steps coming towards them from behind, and then heard a voice that was all too familiar by now.

"Hey Sammy boy, what's this, got yourself a new friend?"

Spencer spun around, eyes widening in recognition of the person suddenly standing in front of them. He felt his breath catch, heart skipping a beat.

Damnit, he should have listened to Jason.

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><p><strong>Dun dun du dun...<strong>

**Next chapter? Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

_After a moment Spencer let the boy pull him further down the street, telling himself that he was being ridiculous. No one would jump them. He would bring Sammy home as promised._

_No sooner had he strengthened his resolve than he suddenly heard steps coming towards them from behind, and then a voice that was shockingly familiar._

_"Hey Sammy boy, what's this, got yourself a new friend?"_

_Spencer spun around, eyes widening in recognition of the person suddenly standing in front of them. He felt his breath catch, heart skipping a beat._

_Damnit, he should have listened to Jason._

Spencer stood frozen as he stared at no other than Derek Morgan, unable to believe that of all the streets in the city he should have come across the one where he'd run into a potentially dangerous gang member unprotected.

Correction, a potentially dangerous gang member who was currently walking his definitely huge dog.

"Hey, Spencer," His pulse quickened when Morgan walked up to them, hands casually buried in the pockets of his leather jacket as he smiled down at him, barely trying to hide his amusement. "Get lost, did you?"

His tone was light, in contrast to the intensity of dark eyes that took in his whole frame only to return to his face, measuring him up.

Spencer tensed under his gaze, knowing deep down that if Morgan wanted to do something he now had an easy game. He shuddered, suddenly very much aware of just how alone and chanceless he really was.

"Morgan," he said tensely, his mind reeling as he weighed his options, "Wh-what are you doing here?"

He was pretty sure he didn't want to hear the answer. If he was already wary of the guy in broad daylight and with hundreds of other students around, their current situation didn't exactly make things more comfortable.

The thought of simply running was quickly dismissed though when he felt Sammy pull at his hand, stepping towards Morgan. Spencer tightened his grip instinctively, pulling the boy behind him. Sammy made a noise of protest but Spencer was too busy watching Morgan to react.

The young man had paused in his steps at his reaction, a frown marring his face as he took in his defensive posture and distressed expression.

"I live around here," he eventually answered with a shrug, quickly back to looking unconcerned, "Right next to my man Sammy here, isn't that right?"

He turned away to wink at the boy, and before Spencer could do anything Sammy's little hand had slipped out of his and he had crossed the distance between them and Morgan, happily bumping his small fist against Morgan's large one when he offered. Spencer watched their exchange in bafflement.

"Hey Derek," the boy beamed, completely oblivious, "this is Spencer. He's making sure I get home safe."

He didn't seem at all worried, more like he actually knew Derek. He happily petted the dog as he talked to the older man. Spencer hesitated as he watched them interact, still wary.

Morgan nodded his head, seemingly thoughtful as he answered, "That's awfully nice of him what with it getting dark and all. But who's going to make sure that Spencer gets home safe?"

Spencer felt his stomach turn at the tone he said it in; it was as far from actual concern as it could get. In fact he still sounded somewhere between amused and threatening, it was hard to tell.

Clueless of course, Sammy frowned briefly, before his face lightened up again, "You're strong! You could take him home safe."

Morgan smirked, clearly having banked on that answer. One eyebrow raised suggestively, he glanced at Spencer who remained still and tightlipped.

"Ah, I would Sammy, but I don't think Spencer likes me very much."

"Huh?" the boy blinked, looking back at Spencer with big, confused eyes, "Why not?"

Spencer ground his teeth inaudibly, internally cursing Morgan for playing the kid like that. What was his problem anyway? If he wanted to beat him up, surely he wouldn't have scruples doing it in front of a child, would he?

So what was this? Was he just dragging it out…or was he possibly really not as bad as originally thought? But then, why didn't he just leave him alone?

Despite his bad feeling, he finally made himself shake his head, trying to at least seem relaxed in front of Sammy. He might not be able to get them out of this predicament but he could at least try, right? "Uh, no- I don't don't like him. But I can get home by myself."

"Are you sure?" Morgan asked, the picture of innocence though he was clearly enjoying his game, "This isn't the best neighborhood. What if you run into trouble?"

Spencer glared at him as viciously as he possibly could while keeping his voice level, "I'll take my chances."

It was probably the stupidest thing to do but he was quickly getting very fed up with the mockery and he wanted to let Morgan know he wasn't fooled by his act. He expected a scowl if not a physical reaction in response, something like Kyle's when he'd been provoked.

To his surprise though Morgan merely shrugged, seemingly unimpressed, "If you insist. Go by yourself. Sammy and I will find home alone, wont we?"

Spencer who for a moment had actually thought he might get out of this relatively easy after all, stopped dead in his tracks when Morgan mentioned Sammy. His worry returned immediately, this time for the child. Even if he seemed to like Morgan, he couldn't just let him walk off with the guy not even knowing if he could be trusted. No, definitely not.

"No," he heard himself say before he could think his words through, "I'll see him there. Come on, Sammy."

He squared his shoulders as he walked up to the other two and held a hand out for Sammy, trying to ignore Morgan's close proximity. Luckily, Sammy didn't have to be asked twice; he happily took his hand and pulled Spencer further down the street without another word.

For a second Spencer was relief even if he was surprised why the child hadn't even said goodbye to someone he apparently liked so much until he felt a presence right beside him. Sure enough, when he turned his head, Morgan was walking next to him, easily matching his strides with long legs.

"Same house," he said nonchalantly when he noticed Spencer staring at him.

Spencer ground his teeth, suddenly feeling the urge to scream while his pulse shot up again. He could already feel old familiar nausea resurfacing, dread weighing him down like lead.

It looked like he wouldn't get out of this after all.

Grasping onto Sammy's hand more tightly, he bit his lip, weighing his options. Clearly Morgan wouldn't leave them alone anytime soon. Maybe he did live in the same house and he was just overreacting. Or maybe he was just waiting to get him alone.

Spencer took a deep breath, knowing that there was nothing he could do as long as he wanted to make sure Sammy was alright. So he eventually gave up, and decided to take things as they came. For now all he could do was make sure not to turn his back on the other and tell himself it would be of any use.

They walked down the street with Sammy happily chatting with both of them, still oblivious to the strained tension between them, or the way Spencer flinched away nervously several times when the distance between them decreased or Derek made a sudden movement.

Spencer for his part really tried to focus on what the child was saying but the truth was he kept noticing things like how tall and broad Derek was in comparison to him, or how big the dog was…

The longer they walked though without an incident and the more he saw Morgan interacting with Sammy the more doubtful he became. Watching him now, he looked nothing but friendly and trustworthy if one could ignore the outfit and their surroundings. He laughed and joked with Sammy in a way that seemed genuinely familiar, absentmindedly petting his dog's head once in a while.

By the time they finally arrived at Sammy's building and had climbed up the five stories to his parents' apartment, Spencer wasn't sure of anything anymore. Except for the fact that he would likely know what was going on for sure as soon as he had delivered Sammy. He took the last stair case, almost relieved to know it was almost over. Soon he would know and that had to be better than waiting.

Once on the right floor, Morgan surprised him by actually getting out a key and opening the door to the neighboring apartment. He waved at Sammy and told him goodbye as he ushered his dog inside.

Spencer stared in disbelief for a whole three seconds before Sammy tugged at his sleeve, diverting his attention. They rung the door bell and Spencer couldn't help but breathe out in relief when he heard a door clap shut behind them. It seemed he had worried too much after all. Apparently it had been enough for Morgan to unnerve him a bit.

Just then the door opened and a middle aged woman opened, she eyed him a little suspiciously as she ushered her child into the apartment but thanked him nonetheless. Sammy waved him goodbye cheerily and then the door closed leaving him in the sparse light of the hallway.

Spencer breathed out slowly, running a hand through his hair as he tried to will himself to calm down already. Boy, that had been close. Apparently this was his lucky day.

With a sigh he turned around, so ready to go home - only to almost jump out of his skin when he walked right into someone standing right behind him.

He yelped in shock, stumbling backwards only to be caught by his arm. With wide eyes he stared up into Derek Morgan's face, trying to figure out where he had suddenly come from.

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><p><strong>As before, please comment on chapter 8, not 9. Sorry I know its messed up. <strong>

**Nevertheless please review!**


	9. Chapter 9

_ ***Just ignore this and move on to the next chapter please.***_


	10. Chapter 10

_Thanks to the ones who reviewed and sorry for the delay._

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><p>x<p>

Spencer was sure his heart missed a beat when he turned around to find Derek Morgan standing right in front of him in the dark hallway.

With a startled gasp he stumbled back, only to be stopped by a large hand grabbing his wrist. Spencer flinched, pulling away sharply.

He didn't expect to actually succeed so when he did, the backward motion coupled with the surprise sent him sprawling to the ground. He hissed when pain shot through his ankle, white hot and blinding.

He clutched at his ankle, grimacing as the pain made him forget everything else for a second. The moment didn't last long though because Morgan had stepped up to him quickly and was suddenly crouching, hovering over him.

"Shit, you okay?"

Out of the corner of his eye Spencer saw a hand coming towards him and recoiled instinctively, pressing his back to the wall.

"Don't!"

Morgan frowned, stopping in mid motion, hand frozen in the air where he had reached out for him. At a closer look there was no malice to be seen in his eyes, no ill intent –still, Spencer refused to be reassured that easily, especially considering his situation.

"Just- leave me alone," he hissed, or tried to at least. He sounded much more scared than he had hoped he would. But then, why wouldn't he be, considering this guy had obviously set him up to fall, metaphorically and literally speaking. Considering he was still alone with him and would no longer be able to run away if he had to. His heart started racing, palms sweating.

He couldn't make out much of Morgan's face in the darkness of the hallway but his voice carried a hint of annoyance, "Ok, what is your problem? You'reacting like I'm about to rip your head off-"

Spencer bit his lip, fighting the urge to snap at the older guy for sounding so full of righteous indignation. Morgan almost sounded offended by his reaction –but how could he, why would he be surprised with the way he'd acted towards him, his history?

He sat frozen, gulping down a whimper as old memories resurfaced. The older kids waiting for him on his way home from school, only to corner him, making sure he couldn't run before they took turns beating him up. God, it would be Las Vegas all over again…how would he explain this to Jason…?

"Please, don't," he hated how his voice shook, couldn't believe he actually had resolved to begging. Shame burned his cheeks but he couldn't help the words from spilling out.

Morgan was huge and he could probably beat him to a pulp within minutes if he wanted to. He could and he probably would once he got tired of whatever game he was playing.

"Please. I don't have anything. I'm not going to tell on you, just please let me go."

He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping to at least ignite pity and not further disgust with his behavior. What was the point of trying to appear brave, really, he had tried that all his life and it had never been of any use. _Especially_ not with the ones who liked to play games.

For a few tormenting long seconds nothing happened at all.

Then, out of nowhere, warm fingers suddenly grasped his chin, turning his head around and he flinched, mentally readying himself for the pain that was sure to follow. He counted down the seconds, three, two, one…But nothing happened. The slight pressure of those fingers didn't increase, it was just there, almost reassuring in its gentleness. Spencer shivered.

"You really think I'm going to hurt you."

It wasn't a question so much as a stunned exclamation. For some reason Morgan suddenly sounded shocked, almost offended, instead of annoyed or taunting. Shocked. Like the idea of that happening was disturbing.

Despite what his head was screaming at him, Spencer forced himself to open his eyes and risk a glance into the other's face. Morgan's expression was almost hurt and it looked surprisingly believable.

"Why would you think that?" he asked quietly, dark, soulful eyes holding his intently.

For a moment Spencer believed it, believed him. Then reason returned to him and he jerked his face away harshly, glaring as helpless fury bubbled up inside him for the way this guy was taunting him, making it so believable that he almost forgot his position.

"Oh, I don't know", he hissed, fear pushed aside for the moment, "maybe because your friends already beat me up once, or because everybody keeps warning me to stay away from you or because my dad told me about your police records, or because of the way you acted back out there with Sammy or MAYBE because you snuck up on me and cornered me in a dark deserted hallway?"

Spencer took a deep breath as soon as he was done, immediately realizing how stupid what he'd just done was. Antagonize the antagonist. Really?

He felt his stomach knot when a look of irritation flickered across Morgan's face and his jaw tensed. His eyes flashed darkly at the accusations and Spencer could immediately see that he'd hit some sore spots. Only then did it occur to him that he hadn't looked at him like that before, he'd always been amiably and calm. He been scared then -and now he'd gone and made him mad. '_Damnit, how stupid are you?'_

"Well, you're wrong." His breath caught in fear when Morgan leaned in closer, teeth gritted.

"First of all, I was standing here the whole time," he said sourly, "I just opened the door to let my dog inside. Secondly, a little teasing doesn't automatically mean I'm going to bash your head in, I was just trying to give you a little lesson about judging people before you know them."

More anger flashed across his face and Spencer gulped nervously.

"And most important of all", he added, with a little less ardor but just as much conviction, "Hotch and Prentiss are completely full of it and should mind their own damn business."

Spencer just stared at him wordlessly. Morgan hesitated, seemingly unsure about the reason for his silence. Maybe he'd expected another heated comeback. He obviously didn't know him very well because Spencer was already back to being intimidated again, especially with the way Morgan was in his face right now.

Yes, he was pretty sure his accusations had actually scratched at the guy's pride, meaning they might not all be totally justified after all - but that didn't mean he felt much safer yet.

When instead of replying, big doe eyes just continued to stare at him in tense apprehension, Morgan sighed, finally sitting back on his heels as he rubbed a hand over his face. He seemed to have realized that despite his reasoning Spencer quite literally was backed into a corner here. Spencer couldn't be sure but he thought he saw something akin to regret in his eyes for a brief moment.

"I'm sorry," he eventually murmured, voice suddenly much softer, "It's not your fault. I just –you're alright, Spencer. I wouldn't do anything to you."

His anger seemed gone as he looked straight into Spencer's eyes, giving him a chance to judge if he was lying. The younger boy assessed him warily for a long moment, partially confused about this sudden change in tone, but also unsure about what to believe. Morgan seemed truly genuine and by now the amount of talking he'd done seemed a bit too elaborate to be some stupid ploy to prank him.

Eventually, he relaxed slightly, moving so he wasn't pressed quite as tightly to the wall anymore. Though still wary, he couldn't help but at least want to believe that those dark eyes were telling him the truth.

Morgan nodded, smiling slightly as he took in the minimal change.

The air around them slowly grew less tension laden and Spencer was beginning to think Morgan might just let him walk out of here unscathed after all. Which brought up the question of how he was going to walk on his ankle.

Seemingly reading his mind, Morgan nodded towards his leg, "Your ankle still hurting?"

He seemed to have gone back to friendly and easygoing in only a few moments, their argument pushed aside. It seemed a little odd, but Spencer wasn't about to complain in his relief. So he just nodded minimally, eyes cast down at his injury. He didn't think he would be able to just walk this kind of pain off.

"Do you mind if I take a look, see if it's maybe sprained?"

To his credit, Morgan waited for Spencer to nod this time before moving closer and touching him. Spencer wasn't aware he'd held his breath until the other began to carefully examine his leg, mindful to avoid causing him further pain. It took a while but ever so slowly he began to relax under the gentle fingers brushing over his skin.

He let Morgan examine him, watching him work as he took the few minutes to contemplate the fact that he was sitting in some strange hallway in the worst part of the city with someone he'd been nothing but frightened of for the past weeks.

Now, in light of recent developments, Morgan didn't seem so bad and scary after all. In fact, he seemed rather nice and caring. He still wasn't sure how this new picture fit with what everybody else was saying, who was right and who was twisting things, but as of right now he was willing to give Derek Morgan the benefit of the doubt.

It seemed he really had been too quick to judge.

"Did that hurt?" Morgan asked just then without looking up, fingers resting above his manacle. Spencer shook his head, shivering slightly at the touch.

No, it didn't hurt.

In fact, it felt sort of nice.

By the time Morgan finally sat back on his haunches, rearranging the hem of his pants, Spencer was almost completely calm. The older teen seemed to sense the change and smiled warmly at him.

"It looks fine to me. You'll probably want to put some ice on it and wait a while before running your next marathon though."

Spencer returned the smile timidly, "Thanks."

For a moment they remained still in their positions, just looking at each other.

Finally, Morgan was the first to move. He pushed to his feet and then bent down to offer Spencer his hand, "Here let me help you up."

This time around, Spencer almost didn't hesitate at all before putting his hand in the one offered to him.

x

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><p><strong>This was supposed to be longer but I got tired, sorry again. If you want to read the next part please review.<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry, this has taken so long everybody, my muses were pretty occupied beating off homework and personal issues these past couple of weeks. I cant promise that that will change soon but I'll do my best and I hope you havent given up on this story yet. **

**Btw, just to let you know, the next 2 or three chapters will still be focused on Spencer and Morgan. I really want to finish this one story arc before moving on with the overall story. But dont worry, I havent forgotten about Hotch^^**

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><p><em>For a moment they remained still in their positions, just looking at each other.<em>

_Finally, Morgan was the first to move. He pushed to his feet and then bent down to offer Spencer his hand, "Here let me help you up."_

_This time around, Spencer almost didn't hesitate at all before putting his hand in the one offered to him._

Morgan pulled him up with ease, keeping a steady hand on his arm to make sure he wouldn't lose his balance. Spencer held on instinctively as he gingerly tried to put weight on his strained ankle. He hissed in pain almost immediately, swaying.

He startled slightly when a warm arm wound itsself around his waist, keeping him upright; suddenly they were so close it almost felt like he was leaning into the older teen's body, like an embrace. He blushed, embarassed, and pulled away slightly -he had decided to give Derek the chance to prove himself, yes, but that didn't change the fact that he barely knew the other and that they were hardly _this_ close even if Derek didn't seem to mind.

"I don't think you'll be able to walk properly just yet," Derek mused calmly, seemingly oblivious to Spencer's conflict, "Maybe we should put some ice on it. I have some in the apartment, come on."

He made to turn towards his door, pulling Spencer with him, only pausing when he felt the younger boy stiffening in his arms. Morgan hesitated and Spencer almost felt guilty at the look of sadness that came over his face when he saw his reluctance to trust him had remained. After a moment, Morgan shook his head, sighing, "It's okay, I get it. You don't know me and trust has to be earned."

Spencer swallowed, breathless; he didn't know what to say, torn between the desire to trust Morgan and the remaining mistrust in why Morgan was being so nice, why he would even want to earn his trust...

"My sister Desiree is home, if that'll make you feel better," Morgan suddenly remarked, "She's a freshman at our school."

Before Spencer could reply, he rung the door bell to his own apartment, and seconds later the door was opened by a girl around 13 who looked at the two of them with open confusion on her face.

"Derek, what are you doing standing out here? And who's that?" She looked at Spencer curiously but clearly not the least bit worried or intimidated.

"Desiree, this is Spencer and he hurt his ankle. Could you get some ice out of the fridge?"

She shrugged and then disappeared, leaving the door open to skip down a warmly lit corridor. Morgan turned to look at Spencer questioningly, hopeful almost, as though he was asking him to trust him. Spencer breathed in deeply, finding himself unable to keep up his defenses any longer. If Morgan was lying he was a damn good deceiver indeed.

He nodded quietly, letting Morgan help him hop into the apartment.

Ten minutes later he was sitting on the Morgan's couch, still bodily unharmed, an ice pack pressed to his ankle. The pain was slowly subsiding but now the silence was becoming a little weird, disrupted only by Derek's sister signing along loudly to a CD in her room somewhere. Spencer stared at his knees, thinking about something to say. It felt odd to not talk, considering he'd been invited into someone's home. It was not easy though to find a topic considering his last words had been accusations...

"Uhm, the apartment is...nice..." he said after a long moment of silence. It was in a way. It was small but neat and homely. Derek smirked dryily, leaning back in the couch.

"It's the best we can do. I work as much as I can but for now it's basically just my mother taking care of the four of us."

"Where's your dad?" Spencer asked before he could think better off it, regretting it almost instantly when a shadow passed the others face.

"He died when I was ten," Derek eventually answered quietly, "He was a cop, someone shot him. Since then, it has only been my ma and my sisters."

"I'm sorry," Spencer pressed the back of his fingers to his mouth, guilty but Derek waved the matter off.

"It's okay, you couldn't know, "Derek shrugged, "Not a lot of people at school know either...well, mostly because they don't bother to look beneath the surface."

His mouth briefly turned into a hard line at those words and Spencer knew he was talking about Aaron and his sister -and this time he did feel sort of bad for simply assuming they were always right.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, this time for something else though, "You're right...I shouldn't have judged you without...its just, you were so...and at my old school picking on me was everyone's favorite hobby, so I probably overreacted, but I shouldn't have-"

He was interrupted, startled, when Derek put a hand on his arm, stopping his ramblings. "I get it. We were both being presumptous. I wouldn't have acted like I did had I thought I was actually scaring you. I thought you were just shy,...nervous, you know?"

Spencer turned to look at him directly, confused, "Why would I be nervous if not because I was scared?"

At his question, the look in Derek's eyes suddenly seemed to shift, from regretful to something else, something he couldn't quite identify but that kept his eyes glued to those dark irises, raising his heart rate. Spencer felt his breath catch as he really looked into those eyes without reservations, seeing that expression in them again which Derek had regarded him with before, but which had never made sense to him so far...now it seemed to be pulling him in, entrancing...He was reminded of Penny's teasing a while ago...she was right, he really was very handsome...

They both jumped, their intense eye contact broken by the ringing of Spencer's phone.

It was Jason, his worried voice carrying as he demanded to know where Spencer was at this hour. Spencer quickly assured him that everything was fine and that he would be home soon, conviently leaving out the part about sitting in Derek Morgan's apartment. He didn't doubt that his father would flip should he find out, especially with the whole aggravated assault charge thing...

Once he'd hung up there was silence again, the odd athmosphere from a minute ago suddenly gone. Derek shifted, looking like he wanted to say something, but ended up remaining silent. Maybe thinking of Jason had redirected his thoughts, too?

"So..." Spencer eventually asked a little out of context, "About those assault charges...was that just a misunderstanding, then?"

He couldn't keep from hugging himself as he waited for an answer, tense again. He really didn't want to upset Derek again by sounding to distrustful, but the truth was, he had to know.

Luckily, Derek didn't get mad, he merely looked a little troubled, leaning away.

"Well, yeah. I mean, I did hang around with the wrong people at the time," he frowned, "We got into trouble with another gang one night, we were shoving each other around and one guy fell at a bad angle, needed a couple of stitches on his head. Police made it out to aggravated assault, there was nothing I could do to dispute it, especially since the other guys really did deserve the charges. I did some community service and broke ties with my old friends. I'm trying to stay out of trouble now...problem is not everybody is willing to believe that. They'd much rather make me the bad guy."

Spencer didn't miss the renewed jab at the Hotchners but chose to instead focus on the fact that appearently Derek didn't have quite as much criminal engery as he'd been told. If what he said was true of course.

He was just so confused...

"I...I need to go home now, my dad..." He got up, relieved to find his ankle was much better now.

He saw Derek's face fall at the sudden change of mind, seeign it for what it was, a retreat. Specner wasnt sure why Derek woudl eb so sad about that, but it immediately made him feel bad again despite himself.

The more time he spent here the harder it got to see him as the bad guy. But he needed time to think about everything...

"Sure," Derek covered up his dissapointment moderately well, pushing to his feet, "Do you want to call him to come pick you up?"

"No, I'll walk," he shook his head quickly, not making eye contact.

"Are you sure?", Derek's expression morphed into one of worry as he looked down on him, "I meant what I said earlier: This isn't exactely the safest area, especially after dark. I should probably walk you home."

"No, you don't have to. I'll be fine."

Spencer made to walk towards the door, surprised when a hand around his wrist stopped him.

His heart skipped another beat, but Derek's grip remained light, more of a question than a demand, warm skin on his. He shook his head, clearly bothered by one or several things but also determined, "Let me walk you home. I'll leave you alone from now on if you want that but please...I want to make sure you get home safely."

Once again, Spencer found himself at a loss of words as he looked up at Derek, trying to make sense of the authentic worry he seemed to feel, all the while acutely aware of where they were touching. He was torn between feeling undefinably guilty and unexplicably nervous.

"Okay," he found himself saying before he knew it, nodding in confirmation when Derek raised his eyes from their hands to look at him. "Okay, take me home and I'll think about all of this until tomorrow..."

He almost smiled when Derek nodded, seeming immensely relieved that he was given a chance.

"Okay," he smiled.

xxxx

"So you and Penny were a couple in kindergarten?" Spencer chuckled, amused at the idea.

Derek nodded, also smirking, "We sure were."

They were walking down a dimly lit street of Derek's neighborhood, one Spencer would surely have been scared to cross alone. As it was, Derek Morgan was not only proving to be a great distraction but also a gentleman. Spencer pulled the jock's leather jacket closer around his slender body, glad he had offered it to him against the cold. He had chosen not to ponder the implications of that too much, merely glad he could be warm and relaxed after all this evening for once.

He was starting to think that maybe trusting in Derek hadn't been such a bad idea after all. Better even, he was surprisingly pleasant company and once they had gotten to talking it seemed like they had known each other for much longer than just a few weeks.

"So what broke you up?" Spencer asked, chuckling, "Did you pull her ponytail?"

"No," Morgan shook his head, "I just realized she wasn't my type is all."

"What?" Spencer looked at him in surprise at that answer, not having expected an honest one really, "Why not? She's pretty and funny and just great..."

For a second he wondered if it might be her size, whether Derek might be one of those shallow guys despite all indicators. His theories were shot to the wind when Derek shook his head, "Yeah, she is. For a girl."

It took Spencer a full thirty seconds to catch up, only to end up completely shocked. He stopped in his tracks, taken aback by Derek's appearant confession, "You...what? You..."

Was he saying what Spencer thought he was saying? Derek Morgan? He was sure he looked like a fish on land as he gaped at the older teen.

Derek stopped as well, only his eyes hinting at insecurity as he calmly assessed his. "Damn, you weren't kidding," he smiled sadly, "you really were totally clueless."

He took a step towards Spencer and suddenly there was no mistaking the expression in his eyes anymore. Or the fact that it was directed at _him. _

"Wha-" Spencer squeaked, heart suddenly hammering in his chest when he realized what was happening._ That _was the reason Derek had stared at him all the time, followed him around, made allusions...? _THAT?_ But, that couldn't be, even if he was...he would never-

His thougths came to a crushing halt when two large hands cupped his face out of nowhere, Derek suddenly standing right in front of him. He gasped, the sensation of his fingers brushing over his cheeks running through him like an electric current. Only minutes ago, his first instinct would have been to back up, but now his brain didn't seem to work properly, entranced by the intensity of Derek's gaze.

"I like you, Spencer," Derek said, voice slightly rough as he leaned down, "I have liked you since I first saw you...with your doe eyes and your cute awkwardness, the way you talk, the way your breath catches when I touch you...I know that wasn't all fear, Spencer, I can tell. You could like me too if you gave me a chance."

Spencer shivered, the words reverberating deep within him. He could feel heat rushing up into his cheeks as he stared into Derek's eyes, breathless. He knew he should move, or say something, knew that Derek would probably take his lack of protest as confirmation of his words, but he couldn't move, even as the other leaned in closer, bringing their faces so close together that he could feel his breath on his lips...

"Well, well, well, look who we've got here?"

They both jumped apart when a sudden voice broke through the silence. Spencer spun around, eyes widening in shock when he realized that Kyle and three others from his gang where suddenly standing only a couple of feet away. Anxiety slammed into him immediately, making him forget all else. Where had they come from all out of a sudden?

"Nice catch, Morgan," Kyle leered, smacking his lips.

Spencer felt his stomach turn at his words, turning to look at Morgan, painful betrayal filling his chest.

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><p><strong>Cliffhanger :D<strong>

**Well, at least this chapter wasn't quite as short and it had some plot right? **

**So, what do you think? Please, please review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**So sorry :'-( Theres some violence in this, be warned, so maybe that'll help with any aggression you might be feeling towards me right now.**

**Thanks so much for all your lovely reviews!**

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><p>"Well, well, well, look who we've got here?"<p>

They both jumped apart when a sudden voice broke through the silence.

Spencer spun around, eyes widening in shock when he realized that Kyle and three others from his gang where suddenly standing only a couple of feet away. Anxiety slammed into him immediately, making him forget all else. Where had they come from all out of a sudden?

"Nice catch, Morgan," Kyle leered, smacking his lips.

Spencer felt his stomach turn at his words, turning to look at Morgan, painful betrayal filling his chest. The doubts he had just barely let go off returned instantly without him being able to do anything about it.

What did Kyle mean? Had Morgan known he would be here?

There was no doubt in his mind that Kyle and his friends had nothing good in mind if they had stopped here; it didn't surprise him.

But Morgan, too? After everything they'd just…

He didn't want to believe that, no, but there was a little voice in his head nonetheless, laughing at him, telling him that it had been stupid of him to trust a stranger, and that of course nothing about his situation had changed…

Feeling tears welling up in his eyes, he stared at Morgan whose gaze had darkened at seeing his class mates. For a second everything seemed frozen, and Spencer found himself wishing desperately that Morgan would just turn to look at him, so he'd be able to see in his eyes what he was thinking. See whether that sincere, trustworthy, w arm expression had lingered or if it had been a façade after all.

He didn't though.

Instead, he merely glared at Kyle, squaring his shoulders, "You know I have nothing to say to you, Kyle, I haven't for a long time. So why don't you walk on?"

At his words, Spencer left out a breath he didn't know he'd held, feeling a weight drop from his chest. So Morgan wasn't in on this? Judging by his face, which mirrored Kyle's scowl, he wasn't.

Just as relief washed through him, Kyle laughed, taking a step forward. His friends followed at his heels, through and through threatening in the collective.

"What makes you think I want anything from you?" he asked, then looked over at Spencer pointedly, "Mr. Smarty Pants and I still have an unfinished conversation. Don't we?"

Spencer immediately took a step back, flight instinct setting in. Of course they weren't finished with him yet after Aaron had saved him last time…this was what he'd been scared of all along. In his mind, he started to calculate how his chances of running away with his bad ankle were, coming up with _Devastatingly low_ –it seemed like he was going to get beat up after all today.

When Kyle made another step towards him though, Morgan suddenly moved, stepping in front of Spencer, hiding him behind his bulky frame.

"I said, Beat it," he growled, hands clenched to fists by his sides.

While Spencer stared at his back in utter surprise –he had been hesitant to even hope that Morgan wouldn't hurt him personally, him actually going out of his way to defend him seemed ludicrous –Kyle's eyes narrowed in irritation.

"Watch it, Morgan," he threatened, "I've overlooked you turning your back on us so far, because we used to be friends. But you don't want to get in our way…especially not when you're all alone with no one to have your back."

The threat hung in the air between them for a long moment, both of them fixating and measuring the other. Morgan was tense, keeping an eye on the four teenagers as they slowly started to for a half circle around them.

Then he reached behind him, grasping Spencer's forearm urgently. He looked at the scared teenager intently, worry shining through his eyes, "You think you can run when I tell you to?"

Spencer immediately shook his head, half because he already knew he wouldn't be able to, but also because he suddenly realized what Morgan was planning. Was he actually going to risk getting hurt just to help him out of this? It certainly looked like it.

Suddenly he felt incredibly low for ever having doubted the other's sincerity.

He shook his head again, his hand automatically latching on to the Morgan's wrist. "No, don't, just leave, don't worry, I'll be fine."

It was the best he could do. He couldn't pretend that he didn't need help, but he could at least free a good person from the responsibility of having to be that help at his own cost.

To his dismay, Morgan was having none of it.

"Don't be ridiculous," he scoffed like the idea of him leaving was laughable, before gently but determinedly pulling Spencer behind his back again. Then he focused on the gang once more, eyes suddenly almost as cold as those of his former friends' as he grinned darkly, "You know, Kyle, I'm actually glad we came across your lowlife ass tonight. Gives me a chance to prove just how finished I am with you."

Kyle sneered.

"Finished you are."

Then, without so much as another word of warning, he launched himself at Morgan, crossing the remaining space between them and swinging his arm back to hit him squarely in the face. The dark-skinned teen saw the blow coming and evaded it swiftly, only to immediately lash out in retaliation. Five seconds later they were engaged in an escalating fist fight, kicks and blows being delivered on both sides with equal brutality.

Spencer stared at them in horror, his breath held, not knowing what to do. Morgan fighting like this looked very much like Kyle and the others like him, utterly frightening in their brutality. He had to remind himself that he had seen the softer side to Morgan in order to keep up the differentiation, to remember that Morgan was on his side.

In that moment, Kyle landed an especially heavy punch to Morgan's jaw, splitting his lip and Spencer's stomach turned; suddenly he realized how serious this was turning. He looked around hastily, trying to think of a way to end the situation. He needed to help, but he knew he wouldn't be able to do much except be a distraction…

He winced when Morgan landed a particularity hard blow to Kyle's stomach who wheezed, his knees buckling. Well, at least for now it seemed like Morgan didn't actually need help…

Or at least he thought so until suddenly the rest of Kyle's gang got in on the fight, all of them attacking now, without scruples it seemed. Outnumbered, it didn't take long for Morgan to lose the upper hand and soon he was on the ground, one guy kicking him in the ribs, the others not far behind. Horrified and suddenly very much scared for Morgan, Spencer yelled at them to stop, but no one reacted. They all seemed hell bent on teaching their former friend a lesson about loyalty. One of them used his boot to kick his face and blood smeared across Morgan's face, a pained groan echoing in the street.

Without thinking any further, Spencer screamed and launched himself at the guy, trying with all his strength to push him away, stop him. To his credit, it did have the effect of Morgan being left alone for a moment; instead he felt himself being grabbed and shoved to the ground, a kick to the stomach taking his breath away. His hands chafed from the concrete but he barely had time to register the pain before he was grabbed and hauled up again by his collar. He blinked, finding Kyle staring into his face with a cold sneer.

"Can't wait to get your ass kicked, you little punk? No problem."

Another, harder, slap to the face sent him to the ground again, and this time he hit his head on the floor so hard that his vision swam. He gasped in pain, feeling blood on his face from the impact and fearfully scrambled back when Kyle's shoes came closer.

"Don't you fucking touch him!" Morgan yelled from somewhere nearby, breathless, clearly in the middle of his own fight.

Kyle only laughed.

"Clue me in now, how do you get all these guys to fight your battles for you?" he shook his head, grimacing, "Or don't, I'd rather not hear details actually."

Somehow, Spencer found it in him to glare up at him for that comment. He struggled to get up again but his head was still reeling. He barely registered that now there seemed to be other bystanders. From the corner, one man was yelling at them, and there was a woman who seemed to be talking on the phone.

_Oh please, call someone…_

Spencer turned his head, looking for Morgan to see if he was alright but couldn't see him; he yelped when a large hand closed around his throat, lifting him from the ground. He thrashed in Kyle's grip, nails clawing at the fingers cutting of his air supply. His vision began to blacken.

This was it, he thought, they were toast, done, dead.

He was close to passing out when out of the corner of his eye he suddenly saw Morgan shoving the guy who'd been holding him down hard, making him stumble. Immediately, all three of Kyle's goons made to jump at him again but suddenly froze when Morgan pulled something out of his pocket.

Spencer blinked, seeing something glint silver in the light of the street lamps. His heart dropped into his stomach; this had just gotten as bad as it possibly could. He opened his mouth to speak, yell, plead maybe, but there was no oxygen left in his lungs, his brain. He didn't even see Morgan shoving the suddenly scared gang members aside, stalking towards them with large steps and pointing the knife at Kyle threateningly. He only registered the grip on his throat suddenly giving up and then the pain of crashing to the ground yet again. He gasped for air, clutching his throat and trying to get his brain to stay focused, and not switching into panic mode completely.

A glance upwards showed him Morgan, giving a truly scary impression with his eyes flashing furiously and blood running down his temple. He was standing right in front of Kyle, the knife pointed directly at him, ready to attack. Kyle had gone pale, clearly not having expected this turn of events; he lifted both hands, appeasing, "Hey, chill man, don't do anything-"

"Shut up!" Morgan snapped, eyes blazing and wild, "Get the fuck out of here, Kyle, and don't come near us again or I'll finish _you_."

Spencer didn't look at Kyle to see whether he was complying; his eyes were glued to Morgan's murderous expression until his vision blurred, then he found himself very much distracted by the fact that he suddenly couldn't seem to breathe, his chest constricting, painfully. _Panic attack_, he brain offered uselessly, _hyperventilation._ He forced himself to close his eyes and take deep clam breaths, trying to get his body under control again. Unsurprisingly, it didn't do much good.

The next time he looked up, Kyle was nowhere to be seen and there was only Morgan, kneeling next to him, talking to him…. He was pulled up from the ground, strong arms supporting him and didn't resist when he was pulled against a broad chest. There was the sound of something metallic hitting the ground and then a warm hand touched his face, gingerly ghosting over the cuts on his forehead.

He thought he heard Morgan's voice, mumbling hushed, apologetic words, but before they could make sense the night was suddenly filled with the sound of sirens and blue light flared up, making him cringe when it hurt his eyes. He felt Morgan tensing against him, but the older teen didn't move, not even when there were tires screeching close by and then heavy, hasty footsteps approaching.

Just seconds later it seemed, he blinked in utter confusion when he heard his father's voice yelling his name.

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><p><strong>So what do you think?<strong>

**What's gonna happen? And how much trouble are our heroes in? **

**Please review :-)**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey there! **

**Sorry people, I know it's been forever. Forgive me?**

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><p><em>"Shut up!" Morgan snapped, eyes blazing and wild, "Get the fuck out of here, Kyle, and don't come near us again or I'll finish you."<em>

_Spencer didn't look at Kyle to see whether he was complying, very much distracted by the fact that he suddenly couldn't seem to breathe, his chest constricting, painfully. Panic attack, he brain offered uselessly, hyperventilation. He forced himself to close his eyes and take deep clam breaths, trying to get his body under control again. Unsurprisingly, it didn't do much good._

_The next time he looked up, Kyle was nowhere to be seen and there was only Morgan, kneeling next to him, talking to him…. He was pulled up from the ground, strong arms supporting him and didn't resist when he was pulled against a broad chest. There was the sound of something metallic hitting the ground and then a warm hand touched his face, gingerly ghosting over the cuts on his forehead._

_He thought he heard Morgan's voice, mumbling hushed, apologetic words, but before they could make sense the night was suddenly filled with the sound of sirens and blue light flared up, making him cringe when it hurt his eyes. He felt Morgan tensing against him, but the older teen didn't move, not even when there were tires screeching close by and then heavy, hasty footsteps approaching._

_Just seconds later it seemed, he blinked in utter confusion when he heard his father's voice yelling his name._

"Spencer!"

_Jason_, his brain supplied at a sluggish pace. Jason. His father was here and he sounded more scared than he ever could have imagined.

He looked up, trying to make him out but his vision was still blurry, hindered by tearing eyes and the bright, flashing lights surrounding them.

"Spencer!" his father called for him again, his voice drowned out this time by more people yelling.

"Chicago PD! Put your hands up where we can see them!"

Spencer blinked rapidly, tense and confused at the aggressive yelling. The police were here? Right…Jason worked for the police…so he hadn't just come looking for him…was he here because the neighbor had alarmed the cops to the raucous they had caused on the street by fighting?

Before any part of his brain could make sense of those puzzle pieces, there was sudden movement close by. The next moment Morgan's presence vanished from his side, leaving him struggling to stay upright.

Jason was on the ground next to him, steadying him in an instant. "Son, are you alright? Did he cut you anywhere else!"

_He…cut…wait, what-?_

With enormous effort Spencer pulled himself together then, realizing that this wasn't the time to space out while everybody around him was on such high alert and clearly highly tense…and coming to wrong conclusions?

He blinked again, fighting to finally see clearer. White and blue light was lighting up the night, two police cars parked in the middle of the otherwise empty street. Kyle and his friends were long gone, replaced by three police officers in uniforms. Two of them had seized Morgan by his arms, holding him still, while the third was fumbling with what looked like a pair of handcuffs.

And Morgan wasn't even protesting…wasn't trying to defend him or clear things up-

It was that sight that finally made Spencer snap out of his shell shocked state. They were arresting Morgan! But- he had protected him, why weren't they chasing after those other guys instead?

"No," he gasped, struggling to get to his feet.

Jason held him back, steadying him as he swayed. "It's okay, Spencer, you're safe. They're taking him into custody."

"No!" Spencer shook his head urgently, fighting his father's grip, "No! Why- dad, he didn't do anything!"

Jason frowned deeply, his worry obvious, "Spencer, you don't come home from work for hours after dark and just when I'm about to go look for you _during my work hours,_ we get a call that- and then I find _you_ in this neighborhood, bleeding and beaten up, and _him_ with a knife next to you and you-"

"He didn't do anything, dad!" Spencer interrupted his father's anxious rant. He could feel the man's worry, understood it too, after all he was still a trembling mess even now that his attackers were long gone –but he couldn't let Morgan be blamed for his attack, and his father seemed far too ready to just jump to conclusions.

"I -there were these guys…" he said, wracking his brain to say the right thing, "…they…from my school…they had threatened me before and tonight they just came out of nowhere…and Morgan…Derek…he was…walking by and he ran over to help!"

He inhaled shakily, anxious as he stared at his father, praying that that had just sounded logical. Jason's eyebrows furrowed deeply as he stared at him in surprise, but before he could say anything one of the other officers looked over to them, "Is that true?"

"Yes," Spencer nodded immediately.

"So he didn't attack you with that knife?"

"No. One of the others shoved me and I fell on my head. They must've brought the knife, too. If Derek hadn't been there I don't know what would have happened."

The officer turned towards Morgan. "That true, Derek?"

Spencer looked at the other student intently, silently willing him to agree. After a sheer endless moment, he finally did nod as well, although he kept up an inexplicably somber expression and silence.

Jason looked at him, then at Spencer for a long moment.

He didn't seem convinced, like he didn't _want_ to believe Morgan was innocent in this-after all he'd incarcerated him before for assault- or like maybe he could just tell that Spencer wasn't telling him the whole truth….

Spencer did his best not to waver while he was subjected to his father's stern gaze.

Morgan _had _saved him after all, helping him out now was the least he could do. Yes, that incident with the knife had been frightening –but he hadn't had a choice had he? He'd done the only thing left to protect them both.

But the cops wouldn't understand that, he realized. They only saw the knife and a kid from a bad neighborhood with one strike already…who knew, they might even throw him in jail for this. No, Spencer thought, resolved. Not if he could help it.

"Well, then," one of the cops finally said when Jason didn't move or say anything even after a whole minute of staring Derek down, "guess that means we owe you an apology, young man."

He waved for his colleagues to let Derek go which they did hesitantly. Derek stepped away from them instantly, rubbing his wrists. "Thanks," he bit out, poorly covering up his contempt.

He looked over at Spencer then, his expression a mix of warring emotions, gratefulness and guilt, and worry and uncertainty all shining in his eyes. It was obvious that he was already regretting having pulled out the knife, even if it had saved them. Spencer remembered his frantic apologies after he'd scooped him off the ground…gosh, judging by how he had felt, he had probably looked terrified during that part of the confrontation, he'd literally lost it to panic…

He could see clearly that it was that which Morgan was regretting most. And it was just that honest regret that made Spencer forgive him for the action on the spot.

He looked up and smiled at the other shakily, hoping the message came through despite his swaying and blood covered exterior.

He was glad to see that something like relief crept into the older student's expression at that; apparently he had understood that Spencer wasn't blaming or doubting him anymore.

Spencer wanted to step closer to him, to somehow say thank you even if he couldn't speak openly in front of these cops now –but his father stepped in his way immediately, seizing his elbow and redirecting him so that he was walking away from Derek.

"Come on, let's get you checked out," he said, pulling his son towards the car.

"But-" Spencer started to protest, but Jason kept on walking like he hadn't heard him. He didn't thank Morgan; in fact he didn't say a word, merely glaring at the student darkly through the windshield once he was in the car, a reproachful look on his face.

"Dad?" Spencer asked, irritated as he watched his father's reaction.

Jason blinked, then tore his eyes away and focused on starting the car.

"Let's get you to the hospital," he said, about to drive off when one of his colleagues walked up to his window, gesturing for him to stop. Frowning, Jason opened the window, looking out impatiently.

"Hey, Jason. Do you think you could take Morgan with you to the hospital to get him checked out? We just got called to an incident with looting at the other end of the city and since he's also a victim here and a classmate of yours son's-" the man trailed off, clearly becoming uncertain when he saw Gideon's expression.

Spencer looked between the two of them tensely. For a moment he thought his father would actually refuse and he cast a worried glance outside to where Derek was still standing. He wasn't nearly as bad off as Spencer –but he had taken a few hits as well.

"Please, dad," he asked quietly, "He got beaten up trying to make sure I would be okay."

Jason didn't say anything for a long moment, although he sure looked like he wanted to say a lot of not so nice things –finally though he just sighed heavily, nodding in agreement.

"Fine, send him over." the cop nodded and walked away quickly.

Spencer sighed in relief, glad that at least now he knew Morgan would get medical attention too if he needed it and he wouldn't have to feel guilty about just leaving him here now.

For that he could very well deal with a tension filled ride to the hospital.

**Review please!**


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